Courtesy of the artist and Morgan Lehman Gallery
Nancy Lorenz, Lemon Gold, Silver Sulphur, 2014; Lemon Gold, Silver Leaf, Mirror, Sulphur, Pigment, Burlap, On Wood Panel; 102 x 72 in (259.08h x 182.88w cm)
European art of the 1600s took off like a rocket, as the marriage of mathematics, architecture, music, painting and sculpture produced works that seemed to perfectly harmonize with themselves and one another.
It presented exuberant, ecstatic, artistic challenges to the more rational Renaissance work that preceded it. This dynamic was not appreciated in all corners. The very term “baroque” was initially something more derisive. Today, a popular notion of the word conjures a sense of complexity and elegance.
The Painter's Eye: Featuring Mbuti bark cloth piece from the Southern University of New Orleans
The art world, on the other hand, can be a funny place, and “baroque” has again become a critical put-down for, among other things, a sign of wretched excess. “Beauty” has been on the outs for quite a while, too.
Beauty Reigns: A Baroque Sensibility in Recent Painting – organized by the McNay Art Museum in San Antonio – is on display at the Akron Museum of Art through May 3. This exhibit of 13 artists features an array of abstract painting that revels in material and a broad range of approaches.
One of my favorite painters, Nancy Lorenz (MFA 1988, Tyler School of Art), has 26 pieces in this show. In an interview with San Antonio Current critic David Goddard, the artist eloquently addresses beauty and the craft of painting:
“The concept of beauty in contemporary art is controversial,” Lorenz says. “Critics and artists both tend to think of it as old-fashioned, superficial and bourgeois. But I’m influenced by the years I spent studying in Japan where the arts are refined, tasteful and elegant, and there’s no distinction between high art and transcendent craft. When I first moved to New York, I had a job restoring and working on Asian antiques, which were just exquisite, and it inspired me to use some of the techniques in my own work.”
In Lemon Gold, Silver Sulphur (mirror, sulphur, pigment and burlap on wood panel, 2014), Lorenz combines gold and silver leaf, mother of pearl, rich impasto and monumental scale to produce this work, which is alive with movement and light. It should come as no surprise that she has been a favorite of many top architects who find her work an ideal fit for their projects. Take this chance to visit this great show in a great venue.
Your reciprocal membership with the Columbus Museum of Art gains you free admission to the Akron Museum of Art and numerous other institutions.
Nationally renowned local artist Michael McEwan teaches painting and drawing classes at his Clintonville area studio.
