Ken Weathersby (update)

173 (lnd), 2009, Acrylic and Graphite on Linen, Reversed, with Removed and Replaced Areas, 18 x 24 inches

Above: Full image; Below: Detail view

image from: Pierogi Gallery

Ken Weathersby is an artist I wrote about last year because I was really drawn to the intellectual nature of his work in which he plays with our expectations of painting as an object of pleasure. It's a dialogue between painter, materials and surface that he engages with; his 'constructions' are visual conundrums that play with the viewers notion of what painting is and what might lie behind or underneath the surface. But, as I said in my post last year, there really is so much more to explore and I urge readers to visit his blog - including a great list of links - for a very interesting read. Ken has been showing regularly however his first solo in NY opened recently at Pierogi Gallery. So a big congratulations, Ken!

Trudy Benson

Tape Deck 2010

oil and acrylic on canvas

66 x72 inches

Image from: Freight and Volume

Been thinking a lot lately about how to make a painting in these times, how to stay connected and to feel that painting is relevant. I like painting that adds to a dialogue about materials, the craft, the effort. I love these paintings by Trudy Benson - a New York painter who is currently having a show at Freight and Volume Gallery. Why? I think the press release says it all:

Working in the rich abstract vein of Hodgkin, Oehlen, and Murray, Benson conjures up a dazzling theatre of mark making and pure delight in paint. She is unafraid to explore new avenues of proof that painting never dies, it only becomes more emphatically alive in its varied and stubborn pleasures. Benson provides a framework of superimposed and overlapping picture planes, thick sculptural relief, and brash color to convey this enjoyment. From subtle vignettes such as "Basketball" to bold tableaus such as "Space Jam 1" and "Painting", we share in the artist’s unbridled enthusiasm for the medium..... read more here.

So yeah, 'pure delight in paint'. I can't ask for more.

Here's a link to James Kalm's video of the opening night. Thanks to Untitled Painter for drawing my attention to it.