Nash Gallery Reflection : Lisa Lipschultz
The first piece that caught my eye was Fortis by Diane Williams. It's a charcoal line drawing of a man, and I love the gestural quality of the lines--very free and fast, as though the artist just sat down for five minutes to sketch and that's how it came out. I also like the way the arms and hands are drawn in a few different positions, as if the artist changed her mind about where they should be placed but didn't bother erasing her original lines. The free flow of the lines and the multiple pairs of hands creates a lot of movement in the piece. The expression of the man's face also struck me; it seemed to convey an intense emotion but I wasn't exactly sure what that emotion was--maybe desperation; there was something almost inhuman about his face. Tension between the facial expression of the man and his posture, and the title of the piece which means "strength" makes the work thought provoking as well as visually appealing.
The second piece that drew me was Doll by Sandra Menefee Taylor. I was initially attracted by the white paint splatter covering the dress, which is the main element of the piece. Then I noticed the text that comprises the "fabric" of the dress, and which uses children's book-like language that has a slightly menacing overtone to it. At the bottom of the piece is a series of abstract sketches of houses containing what look like human figures, and with the title these reminded me of doll houses. I was interested in the concept of the piece more than anything, and I took it as a sort of commentary on confinement and particularly the social confinement of women--women being confined to dresses, confined to houses (the domestic sphere), confined to a certain set of expectations of what they should be and what they should do that is set forth in childhood (perhaps through playing with dolls).