Contributed by Margaret McCann / Louis Fratino’s paintings in “In bed and abroad” at Sikkema Jenkins depict varied social situations, from intimate scenes to foreign climes. Snapshots of memories, many from Italy, read like a travel diary. In Duomo, light seems to dissolve a church façade into a gossamer veil, like Monet’s series of Rouen. Milan’s iconic gothic cathedral is strikingly illuminated, as are most monuments in Italy at night. Silhouetted throngs of young people in front of it have gathered after their evening stroll to aid digestion, take in the sumptuous surroundings, and see what’s happening in the local piazza. This saunter or “passegiata” is also “a walk in the park,” and the painting’s mellifluous drama demonstrates Fratino’s impressive facility, as it captures the Italian relish of visual and other small pleasures, which Americans often mistake for sunny dispositions (see Fellini’s La Dolce Vita).
Tag: Sikkema Jenkins
Merlin James’ elusive architecture
Glasgow-based Merlin James’ small architectural paintings invite various associations � domesticity, industry, nostalgia. The mix or alternation of functionality and ornament, and the reference to models or source images, create resonances with the artificial structuring and ‘building’ of the paintings themselves. In The Village Voice, RC Baker compares James’ paintings […]
Amy Sillman’s “Suitors & Strangers” in Houston
“Amy Sillman: Suitors & Strangers,” organized by Claudia Schmuckli. Blaffer Gallery, The Art Museum of the University of Houston, Houston, TX. Through Nov. 10. Ulrich Museum Of Art, Wichita State University, Kansas, April 19- August 5.In the Houston Press, Kelly Klaasmeyer reports: “Amy Sillman paints like she’s reincarnated from some […]