Artist Profiles

It was with many regrets that we missed Pat Passlof�s recent solo show at the Elizabeth Harris gallery; especially after having enjoyed her previous exhibition in that same gallery back in the autumn of 2000.  To make up for it, we profile her work here with the consolation that a wider range of work is proffered.

The oldest paintings featured  were completed in 1997 and in the 5+ years since, this artist has remained committed to painterly abstraction. The earlier pieces overtly utilize the grid structure for form; albeit �melted� down. In this they find common ground with the paintings of Gudrun Mertes-Frady for approaching the rigidity of the

Ann Bradstreet, 1998, oil on linen, 36 x 30 in

grid by softening the edges. The paint handling and thus, the forms, are exceedingly loose and flowing. Gravity in these pieces is beside the point since you might turn them on any side and they would still work. But a shift gradually occurs as the grid becomes more focused and, in some cases, evolves into vertical lines (this was the body of work featured in the artist�s 2000 solo

Untitled, 1997, oil on linen, 40 x 30 in

Mirror 13, 1997, oil on linen, 36 x 36 in

show in which the titles of the paintings had  literary references). Gravity eventually returns and a different sense of rhythm is brought into play. The palette too shifts; it is toned down and leans toward softer hues and mono-chromatics.

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