I saw three pieces at the Leonard Edmondson Gallery that caught my eye but they each left me with different impressions. The art work titled “Scheherazade” made by Ernest Freed in 1953 was on display. It is a mixed color intaglio. David Muller’s “Hinge” is a sculptural print that was created in 1975. The art that I think about after leaving the gallery is titled “Heralds of Inquiry.” It is a color etching with aquatint. No artist is named. I will discuss the art I have seen by talking about (a) art that I liked, (b) art that I did not care for, and (c) art that stands out in my memory after I visited the show.
I liked the art by Ernest Freed (1908 –1974). He was a painter and a printmaker. In 1933 he earned a B.F.A. in Art from the University of Illinois. He received his M.A. in fresco painting from the University of Iowa. He won prizes and gave many solo exhibits. He promoted printmaking when he was at the Otis Art Institute which is located in Los Angeles. An intaglio is a type of print making. First the image is etched or cut into a surface called a plate. Then the colors are put on the plate and the image is printed on the paper. The colors are added one at a time to the plate and that color is printed. The print definitely looks like it is three-dimensional. There are many layers to the print too. The art is full of shapes that almost look like something familiar. For example there is a creature that almost looks like an elephant but when I looked more closely I realized the creature was something imaginary. The print is like the stories of Scheherazade all tossed into a dream. My imagination works overtime when I look at this print.
I realized after awhile I did not like “Hinge” very well. At first I liked it a lot but then the concept did not go anywhere for me. This piece really is three-dimensional. It is a paper hinge, a hinge sculpted from thick textured paper. Photos of paintings and three installations by David Muller can be viewed on ArtNet I prefer his paintings next to the “Hinge.” For example his painting titled “Free Fall (35,000 Feet)” is very nice and more enjoyable to view. It depicts of globe made with bluish tiles and the color is pretty. The interesting thing about the painting is that it is in two pieces. A narrow piece on the right side is separate from the main painting. (http://www.artnet.com/artists/dave-muller/)
“Heralds of Inquiry” is similar in some ways to “Scheherazade.” The both look like they have a dark subject from a distance but when you are closer that is not really the case. They both have areas of color although the background is dark and there are grey shadows. “Heralds of Inquiry” is drawn with more angles and squares compared to “Scheherazade.” “Scheherazade” has more curves. There are several interesting things about “Heralds of Inquiry” that I think about. One of the forms is a human shape colored yellow; is he the herald? The etching is like a puzzle that looks like the pieces will fit together if you can just figure out how to make that happen.
I enjoyed visiting the Gallery. I definitely prefer art that has a lot of shaped and movements compared to the something like the white paper sculpture of the hinge.
Reference
Leslie, Melanie Wade. An Abbreviated Glossary of Common Printmaking Terms and Definitions. . (n.d.). Web. 12 March 2013.
