www.scene4.com

And Now for Something Completely Different!

Philip Gerstein

 

 

Painting in several modes (or "styles") of abstraction, all at the same time, may disorient some people. It is though a huge advantage for an abstract colorist like myself, aiming to stay open, non-repetitive, fresh -- with each new painting.

 

Over the past months I took the opportunity to present my post-minimal cycle of paintings at some length (see e.g.: July 2021 "Sometimes There Is Bliss").

 

There will be a ready chance to view some of my other, much differently styled work up close, if you plan to visit New York or Boston, where I'm showing my paintings in two separate gallery shows this August.

 

And Now for Something Completely Different | Phillip Gerstein | Scene4 Magazine | August 2021 | www.scene4.com

 

"We Might Be Giants", 24in. x 18in. (61cm x 46cm), Oil stick, acrylic,
& mixed media on wood panel. Now at Lichtundfire Gallery, NYC.

 

In New York City, Lichtundfire Gallery (part of the Lower East Side art district) has chosen four of my paintings for their summer show "In Full Bloom". As the exhibition title indicates, they are showing work from my denser, more kinetic, color filled and landscape-facing body of paintings.

 

I am particularly excited for one of the paintings making its premier appearance. To highlight how special this work really is, let us compare it with its sister painting, "Master Stroke", created around the same time, on an identically sized wood panel -- both suffused with the optimism of their shared yellow background.

 

And Now for Something Completely Different | Phillip Gerstein | Scene4 Magazine | August 2021 | www.scene4.com

 

 "Master Stroke", 30" x 24" (76cm x 61cm), Oil stick, acrylic, 
and mixed textural media on wood panel, 2018. 

 

As attractive as the above painting may be, spatially, texturally and coloristically, you need to double that estimate for its non-identical twin. Its title, "Beyond the Idea of Rightdoing and Wrongdoing", comes unexpected but very welcome, out of a Rumi poem, while its encrusted texture and unusually concentrated direct energy endow it with a truly unique spirit. …It goes without saying -- not all paintings are created equal!

 

And Now for Something Completely Different | Phillip Gerstein | Scene4 Magazine | August 2021 | www.scene4.com

 

"Beyond the Idea of Rightdoing and Wrongdoing",
30in. x 24in. (76cm x 61cm), Oil stick, acrylic, pigment,
& mixed textural media,  2018-19. Now at Lichtundfire Gallery, NYC. 

 

I entrust it to your eye, the perceptive and generous reader, to fully enjoy it... and in the fullness of time to share with me a note of your impressions/feedback.

Send Us Your
Comments On This Article

Share This Page

View other readers' comments in Letters to the Editor

Philip Gerstein | Scene4 Magazine | @David Lee Black-2019

Read a comprehensive view of
The Color of Seasons
 
an exhibition of
 Philip Gerstein's work.
Click Here

Born and raised in Moscow, USSR, Philip Gerstein began exhibiting his work in the 1980's with the Boston Visual Artists Union, after pursuing a PhD in Art History at Harvard University.  He studied painting at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and Japanese calligraphy with Toshu Ogawa. Gerstein exhibits in NYC, Provincetown MA, and extensively in the Boston area, as well as organizing and curating painting and photography shows. His work has been reviewed, reproduced and praised in numerous publications, including The Boston Globe, ArtScope Magazine, and Art New England, and he is the author of the prize-winning essay, "Art of Color: Beauty in art comes in so many forms; art of color is a special case of it." International Painting Annual 4. 1st. Cincinnati: Manifest Press, 2014.
More at http://www.PhilipGerstein.com
For his other work in Scene4, check the Archives

©2021 Philip Gerstein
©2021 Publication Scene4 Magazine

 

 

 

www.scene4.com

August 2021

   Sections Cover · This Issue · inFocus · inView · inSight · Perspectives · Special Issues 
  Columns Adler · Alenier · Bettencourt · Jones · Luce · Marcott · Walsh · Letters 
  Information Masthead · Submissions · Prior Issues · Privacy · Terms · Books · Archives
  Connections Contact Us · Your Comments · Subscribe · Advertising · Your Support 

| Search Issue | Search Archives |

Scene4 (ISSN 1932-3603), published monthly by Scene4 Magazine–International Magazine
of Arts and Culture. Copyright © 2000-2021 Aviar-Dka Ltd – Aviar Media Llc.

sciam-subs-221tf71
peta-banner-end-specisism-o1
calibre-ad1
Thai Airways at Scene4 Magazine