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Fiedorek + Schlinke / By
Erin Keever for |
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d berman gallery presents another accomplished show juxtaposing the work of Sandra Fiedorek and Naomi Schlinke. The work of these two artists looks beautiful together in a formal sense, repeating organic circular shapes set within the rectilinear (Schlinke) versus square (Fiedorek) formats. Their work is equally challenging and difficult to decipher. Fortunately for the viewer, the similarities end there. Sandra Fiedorek is known for her site-specific installations, such as the one at the Austin Bergstrom Airport's Central Passage Hall (above baggage claim). It is titled To Parts Unknown (1995-1999), and was commissioned by Austin's Art In Public Places. Known for using unusual materials derived from technology, construction and commercial fabrication, Fiedorek's media may be accessible, but her work is not often immediately recognizable. The works currently on view at d berman are made of Corian, a plastic used in making countertops. They are elegantly installed on the south side of the space, each the exact same size, seven mounted horizontally on one wall, seven lined up on another. At first they bring to mind the minimalist cubes of Donald Judd with a twist. They have laser-etched abstractions on their surfaces, that when lit from behind resemble moonscapes at various stages. Challenging our ready interpretations once again, the artist calls them portraits. Fiedorek received a BFA from Rice University, Houston and an MFA from Columbia University, New York. She was awarded an NEA Mid-America Arts Alliance fellowship in 1992. She lives and works in Austin. Naomi Schlinke's works on paper contain visual references to her own interests. Combining a variety of media such as charcoal, corrugated cardboard, paint and photography, she incorporates decisions about space, dimension, texture and line, creating very personal, symbolic and mysterious imagery. Many of the works in this exhibition are divided into two or three planes. For example in Antique Episode I (2003), vertical cardboard and red painted planes border a central one where orbs suspend above floating top-like forms, one of which is a cutout image depicting a swan. The circular cutout images of swans and ballerinas in Schlinke's work are actually photo details taken from former works. Together with the top motif, they refer to the artist's experience as a dancer and articulate a relationship between movement and rest as well as past and present. Schlinke states, "My vocabulary arises from a somatic basis as much as from a purely visual one, reflecting those forces at work in the body, in painting, and in life." Exhibited in galleries in Houston and San Francisco, at the Dallas Visual Art Center and the Contemporary Art Center of Fort Worth, Schlinke's work was also in New American Talent: The Sixteenth Exhibition, organized by Arthouse (formerly the Texas Fine Arts Association). Schlinke received a BA and MA in Dance at the University of Wisconsin, Madsion. She lives and works in Austin. Sandra Fiedorek + Naomi Schlinke runs through through May 22. There is an artist talk on Saturday May 1. |
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