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Phillips and Jared Theis at D. Berman Gallery |
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The ideals of utopias. The allure of theme parks. The privatization of nature and public space. Joseph Phillips suggests all these in his alluring drawings now on view at D. Berman Gallery. Using delicate precise lines and wonderfully exploiting the luminous quality of gouache pigment, the Austin artist renders imaginary playgrounds and fantasy outdoor spaces. "Corkscrew Park" shows a tidy path winding through a park of manicured trees and lawn, the landscape layered atop a spiraling multi-story concrete form. "Four Slide Tower with Palms" is a massive tubular water park slide placed on a sandy beach filled with palm trees. One wonders what the admission charge is to these bizarre natural amusements. Or moreover, if we're even allowed in. And that's the point. With the nicest of gestures, Phillips suggests that these idealized natural environments are exclusive: Each of these places does, after all, have sharply defined boundaries, with most sitting on neat squares of artificial land. More profoundly, those boundaries are the constructs we ourselves impose on nature. Look closely and you'll see that these fake bits of nature need to be propped up; garden rakes hold them in place. Too often young artists make the mistake of crafting their criticisms into one-liners that don't leave you with much after you get the one, inside joke. Phillips doesn't fall into the trap. His beautifully rendered drawings are more sublime and even sympathetic in their criticism and thus richly rewarding. Complementing Phillips' masterly drawings are the equally beguiling imaginative landscapes created in clay by Jared Theis. Riffing on bulbous natural forms (wasps' nests, coral clusters, ant hills), Theis creates miniature, and mysterious, archaeological ruins. Are these the remnants of some otherworldly tiny civilization? Who knows. But it's awfully rewarding to look and imagine. ("Joseph Phillips and Jared Theis" continues 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays through May 26 at D. Berman Gallery, 1701 Guadalupe St. Free. 477-8877. www.dbermangallery.com.) —Jeanne Claire van Ryzin |
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