Fall preview for painters (continued)

Clint Jukkala, “Inside Out,”2010, oil and acrylic on canvas, 16″ x 20”

I’ll be in New Haven this week installing a few paintings for a show put together by the Greater New Haven Arts Council so I’ll definitely stop by Giampietro Gallery and check out Jukkala’s exhibition, which I imagine (hope) will feature more of his exuberant meditations on inside/outside, front/back, and near/far.

Clint Jukkala, “Reflection,” 2010, oil on canvas, 14″x 17″

“Clint Jukkala: Even if and Especially When,” Giampietro Gallery, New Haven, CT. Opening reception: Friday September 9, 5-8pm. through October 7, 2011.

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Jered Sprecher, “Affinity,” 2011, oil on linen, 68 x 52″

Jered Sprecher, “Occident,” 2011, oil on canvas, 16 x 12″

Steven Zevitas Gallery in Boston is presenting new paintings by Knoxville-based painter Jered Sprecher. Roughly translated, the title of the show, “Als Ick Kan,” which is cribbed from a phrase on several Jan van Eyck paintings, means �as best I can.� Specher’s visual sources include wallpaper, graffiti, architecture, formal gardens, Tupperware, flint knives, cut gemstones, x-rays and images from art history. And FYI, Sprecher, whose work has long been associated with the new directions in contemporary abstraction, doesn’t consider his work provisional because it “comes from a place that is more purposeful and permanent.” Maybe I’ll take a trip up to Boston to see the show and check out the new wing at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts while I”m there.

“Jered Sprecher: Als Ick Kan,” Steven Zevitas Gallery, Boston, MA. September 8 – October 15, 2011

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Sarah McKenzie, “Big Box,'” 2011, acrylic on canvas | 60″ x 60″

Based on images of reconstruction sites where work has come to a temporary standstill, McKenzie’s paintings remind me of Joy Garnett’s Unmonumental photography series because she wrings meaning out of simple objects and situations she finds on the sites. The sense of absence and longing are palpable.

“Sarah McKenzie: Void,” Jen Bekman Gallery, New York, NY. September 10th – October 23rd, 2011. Opening reception: September 10, 2011.

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Maggie Michael, “Danube Series: There is No Rising or Setting Sun (Day),” 2011, ink and spray paint on paper, 22 x 30″

Maggie Michael in her Washington, DC, studio

Did I mention I”ll be spending more time in DC this year? Michael�s show, “There is No Rising or Setting Sun,” features work made this summer in Cetate, Romania, after she finished a collaborative large scale mural for the US Embassy in Bucharest, and gives me hope that the DC art community will be rich and interesting. For this series of drawings, she mixed the ink with water from the Danube river and used old vinyl records by Verdi, Diana Ross and The Jesus and Mary Chain as stencils. �The sun reference is a way of noticing that perhaps the most inspirational phenomenon � day break or sunset � is not as it seems.” Michael says. “The sun does not rise or fall; it is in a relatively fixed position. On the other hand, the sun will appear to always be rising or setting somewhere, according to multiple points and perspectives.�

“Maggie Michael | THERE is NO RISING or SETTING SUN,” G Fine Art, Washington, DC. September 10 – October 15, 2011. Opening reception September 10, 6-8pm.

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For more Two Coats of Paint fall preview posts click here and here.