d up to 57th St to the Washburn Gallery and saw some Leon Polk Smith paintings I liked. The paintings are based on the geometric patterns of Navajo blankets and are a good example of modern culture meeting the native tradition. After a double shot of espresso inspiration at Starbucks, I then went to 55th and Madison to th
e opening of Willard Boepple’s sculptures in the lobby of 545 Madison where I met up with John and Poogie Bjerklie . They introduced me to the sculptor Robert Taplin as we hung out and admired the wall mounted sculptures. Willard's pieces, cast in pigmented resin, were specifically created for the lobby with the collaberation of the Architect and Lighting Designer. They're lit from above and behind to make them have a warm glow and hypnotizing shadows. While they are geometric abstractions, they also have an imagery that alludes to man made objects, i.e. books, jars. The bas relief pieces also have a rhythmic quality.His biography says:"He has served on the faculties of Bennington College and the Boston Museum School and is chairman of the Triangle Artists' Workshop in New York. His work can also currently be seen in the Yorkshire Sculpture Park.
Boepples' wooden sculptures are primarily influenced by utilitarian objects that interact with humans, such as ladders, shelves and mechanisms with levers and cogs.
It is not the objects themselves that are of interest but their dimension, size and proportions. He combines enormous variations in density, interval, and internal scale. The work can be read as everything from abstract evocations of aspiration to oddly canted cubist still lives. Observations of what it is to be human are transformed into metaphorical sculptures. His craftsmanship displays a modernist sense of connection with the long history of sculpture."
I had been to the opening of Wolf Kahn’s Show at Ameringer Yohe on 4/23 and I’m a fan of his Ab Ex landscapes . I am inspired by the relationship between Willard Boepple‘s work and Wolf Kahn’s work. At first glance you wouldn’t think there was any. Upon reflect
ion I noticed they have similar sense of color and rhythm. It’s especially noticeable in the use of pink and lavender. Willard’s resin pieces are made atmospheric with the intentional lighting. Wolf Kahn are blatantly painted atmosphere to the exclusion of detail. While Willard Boepple’s are so strongly geometric, Wolf Kahn’s have a more subtle use of geometry that defines his composition. Interestingly, they both live in Vermont, they are both about the same age, and come from the same modernist tradition : Wolf Kahn worked under Hans H
offman and Willard Boepple is from the Skowhegan School and Bennington College. I'm inspired by both as modernist role models for me.
