SoHo

 GalleryViews / Soho

Claire Seidl at Rosenberg + Kaufman Fine
 Art, 115 Wooster Street to April 24th
 To view a film clip of the exhibition click here.

Claire Seidl�s art has been featured on these pages a number of times in the past. Our last review of her exhibition at the Kristin Fredrickson Gallery included her photography and painting.  In September we published a conversation with her in which she contrasted and compared painting with photography and discussed her approach to each medium. Her current exhibition at Rosenberg + Kaufman Fine Art also features painting and photography which makes perfect sense given this gallery�s dedication to both art forms. However, even more so then her last exhibition, this show presents a seamless integration between the two mediums. One of the first obvious similarities is the forms which is strong enough to nearly render the choice of medium beside the point.

Compare Window Pane with Clothesline (Quilts)  and notice how the Seidl makes use of the grid in each. In the photograph this is accomplished with recognizable imagery broken out into high contrasts of light and shadow. But in her hands, how recognizable is that imagery? If you look carefully you do see the elements that comprise

Claire Seidl, Window Pane, 2003, oil on linen, 48 x 36 in

Claire Seidl, Installation View

Claire Seidl, Installation View

the title but the comprehensive effect is an abstract grid defined in a warm blacks and whites.  This is plenty enough to create drama and interest for the piece so that a narrative provided by recognizable objects is unnecessary. With Window Pane the title implies a narrative but a grid sensibility is the primary focus. In both pieces focus is blurred; in the photograph by

Claire Seidl, Clothesline (Quilts), 2003, gelatin silver print, 14.5 x 14.5 in

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