Bill Jensen has swapped galleries; I last reviewed his March 2003 show at Mary Boone Gallery.  By comparison he has expanded the range of approach for his paintings.  For example, contrast Luohan (Cobalt Blue with Images of a Floating World (Diox Violet).  The former presents a surrealistic vividness whereas the latter is more grounded in earthier tones.  There is roughly an even mix between the two types of work in this show but for me the flashy expressive paintings with their carnival color arrangements don’t match up to the sense of mystery found in the quieter work.  Perhaps Jensen is after a quality of artificiality in these pieces but they don’t offer as much as a painting like Luohan (Light Step) with its few simple forms and articulated surface rendering.  In a side room are included several dark reductive paintings in which the forms are almost indistinguishable.  These pieces express a meditative quietude and their isolation was a great idea in that their cumulative impact is that much greater without the distraction of the brighter work.

Bill Jensen, Luohan (Cobalt Blue), 2004-2005, oil on linen, 28 x 23 in

Bill Jensen, Images of a Floating World (Diox Violet), 2003-2005, oil on linen, 26 x 20 in

Bill Jensen, Luohan (Light Step), 2003-2006, oil on linen, 28 x 23 in