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Modern art comes full circle
By Kristin Baver, A & E Editor, The Keystone
The
circle, an age-old
symbol for the soul,
has long been
utilized to present
perfection through
simplicity. Da Vinci
presented his
�Vitruvian Man�
in a circle to show
man�s perfect
proportions, but the
�Inner Circles�
exhibition is more
reminiscent of
Lichtenstein in an
earthquake.
On Jan. 29, the
Sharadin Art Gallery
premiered its latest
exhibit, an eclectic
blend of six
Philadelphian modern
artists and their
varied styles and
mediums with one
commonality �
circles. David Foss,
James Fuhrman,
Michelle Marcuse,
Antonio Puri,
Vincent Romaniello
and Tremain Smith
were all present at
the reception to the
group exhibition
last Thursday
evening. All six
artists had the
opportunity to speak
to the audience,
while passionately
recollecting their
individual methods
and ideas that made
exhibition possible.
Unfortunately, the
same vigor with
which the artists
spoke failed to
transcend the
barrier of
abstraction present
in most of the
works. With two
exceptions, Puri�s
�Mitosis of the
Soul� and
�Conversation with
Pollock,� �Inner
Circles� was
little more than a
case-study on the
latest modern art
mediums and
techniques.
Shoe polish pimpled
Foss�s works in a
deliberate, but
overwhelming,
pattern, while amber
shellac was poured
generously across
the canvas to freeze
paint droplets
mid-motion. �I use
the circular form in
a dot manner as an
abstract pattern, a
metaphor for
motion,� said
Foss. The
abstraction of his
collection was
heightened with
meaningless titles
such as #23, #8 and
#7. Clearly members
of the same series,
the pieces lacked
the individual flare
to make any
statements of their
own or as a group.
Conversely,
Furhman�s
sculptures were
aptly named but
appeared to still be
in an unfinished
stage. �I let the
pieces tell me what
they want to be,�
said Fuhrman, of his
welded steel pieces,
composed mainly of
scraps from larger
works. His two
series, Vessels and
Dolmens, depicted
forms true to their
names. �I think of
(the dolmens) as
shelters, much like
vessels,� said
Furhman, using his
hands to illustrate
their homogeneity.
Shawn Bollinger, 23,
a post baccalaureate
Art Education major,
said, �I�m
honestly impressed
by Fuhrman�s metal
workings and his use
of basic materials
to create the
abstraction.�
Unfortunately, his
titles often seemed
more carefully
crafted than the
pieces themselves.
His piece �Circles
of Holding -- Recall
the Sweetness of
Freshly Turned
Earth� resembled
two stainless-steel
sharks in a concrete
pool, but the factor
of open
interpretation is,
after all, a
mainstay of
abstraction.
Working with collage
covered by
unadulterated
beeswax, a method
termed encaustic,
Tremain Smith�s
pieces failed to
convey a tangible
theme, even when she
explained her
�mappings of the
unseen.� Her
saving grace,
however, was her
exuberance as she
discussed her
children coming home
with bolts, washers
and other scrap
metal they found on
the street.
Smith�s favorite
technique when
creating her work is
heating bits of
scrap metal and
branding her artwork
with an abstract
pattern of circles.
By alternating the
amounts of pressure
and heat, the
branding obtains an
array of different
effects, from faded
imprints to
blackened outlines.
Branding comes as a
final step to
Smith�s process of
creating art,
finalizing collaged
works that are
sealed with a layer
of transparent bees
wax.
During the
artists�
reception, Vincent
Romaniello explained
the story behind his
work, �Fire,� as
a post-9/11 tribute,
which uses two
vertical lines of
brown and tan dots
to represent the
smoke emanating from
the Twin Towers.
Without knowledge of
his inspiration, the
splash of brown on
either side of what
appeared to be a
calm summer sky
failed to convey
anything about the
title.
�I like
Romaniello�s works
best because
they�re bright,
airy, and they have
a lighter mood to
them,� said Tara
Carr, 18, a freshman
Communication Design
major.
�I didn�t plan
on using the
circles,� said
Michelle Marcuse,
who primarily works
with encaustic on
masonite. �They
just show up. Once
the work starts it
leads me and I
wonder, �Why the
hell didn�t I do
this earlier?��
The titles of
Marcuse�s works
seemed arbitrary,
�Even by
Reflection,�
�Refusing to
Leave� and �The
New Weight� among
them, and were
explained no further
by the artist.
The most fascinating
pieces in the
exhibition were two
works by Antonio
Puri, �Mitosis of
the Soul,� and
�Conversation with
Pollock.�
�Mitosis�
clearly presented
the mitosis of a
cell, using circles
as they appear in
nature to depict a
biological action.
Placed on a gleaming
forest green
backdrop, the
mitotic action was
evocative of an
abstract night sky,
with small, white
beads affixed to the
painting for
texture.
�Conversation with
Pollock� was
comprised of mixed
mediums on canvas
and an installation
piece,
plaster-coated
strings resting on a
table. A small
plaque next to the
piece explained its
relevance in terms
of the circle
symbolizing a
deceased and
detached soul, with
erratic drippings of
paint and the
plaster-coated
offering paying
homage to
Pollock�s
innovative artistry.
The �Inner
Circles� exhibit
will be running in
the Sharadin Art
Gallery through Feb.
29.