GalleryViews / Midtown

Fred Mitchell, Left: Untitled, 1950 oil on canvas 24 X 12 in; Right:  Cielo-Montana, Rome, 1950, oil on canvas, 30 X 11 in

Mitchell�s work from the later portion of the 60s is primarily more structured and at times even a bit reductive (when compared within the framework of this show).  The color and gesture remain but are confined by a semi-grid structure. Another consistency is the quality of the paint which remains thin and transparent.  There is enough similarity to watercolor that you wonder if he ever worked in that medium.  Sure enough, there is one included from 1967.

Overall the exhibition provides both a comprehensive and concise review of this artist�s work over three decades.  There is just enough here to provide a flavor from each period including a figurative painting Mitchell did as a very young man from 1941.  The only problem with this show 

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Fred Mitchell, White, Black & Red, (detail)

is the lighting, which is not broad enough to fully encompass the larger paintings. The result is that it becomes difficult to get an even view of those pieces.  The upper portions tend to retain �hot spots� while the lower portions appear to be in a murky shadow.

Fred Mitchell - Installation View

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