Dan's Papers - July 27, 2007 - art commentary With Marion Wolberg Weiss

While many Hampton galleries are presently featuring well-known artists who have a longstanding relationship to this area, the same is true with the New York art scene,. Of course, summer is not the only season when such artists exhibit in Manhattan, yet the current crop is especially noteworthy and salient, primarily because their work celebrates art movements from the past.

The Whitney Museum's "Summer of Love: Art of the Psychedelic Era" is a good case in point. If we've lived during this period ourselves, we might think we have nothing to learn, but we would be mistaken.

To revisit the work of old friends, to re-experience an age that will never reappear again, to recall what stayed with us some forty years later -- this show is truly both an intellectual and emotional encounter.

Some general and obvious observations about the art are in order: first, the recurring visual motif in the paintings, photography, installations and films of the circle, an icon for the era signifying eternity. Second, there's the curving line, an influence derived from

Art Nouveau. Third, we can't forget the astounding use of light, especially in the period's concert performances and light shows.

Technically speaking, the lack of digital / computer manipulations, particularly in the films / videos, is a joy to behold for purists like yours truly. What's remarkable is the extraordinary effect that are achieved without digital enhancement. The films by local resident Stan Vanderbeek is a good example. Philosophically, the era's themes were also consistent with an emphasis on mysticism, Native American culture and Eastern religions.

The show included East End's Lynda Benglis' signature latex "rug" ("Contraband," 1969) placed on the floor, this time a colorful, festive and celebratory work that gave voice to the era's ambience.

Poster art by Peter Max ( a frequent cover artist for Dan's Papers) was featured as well.

Three other shows were equally thought provoking and insightful, specifically concerning conceptual art, going back also to the 1960s (like the "Summer of Love") and beyond; such presentations featured local residents as well. First, there was "Conceptual Photography 1964-1989" at Zwirner and Wirth Gallery. In addition to the works by Acconci, Baldessari and Lewitt, there were two intriguing works by Dennis Oppenheim who has had his installation recently installed at the LongHouse Reserve.

Oppenheim's two photographs (1970) were stark and compositionally arresting, but hard to figure out, unlike his LongHouse piece. The first image was a long shot showing an object on the sand. It was difficult to discern what the object was. Conversely, his second photo, " Reading Position for Second Degree Burns," was a closer view of a man asleep in the sand with a book on his stomach. One wonders if this was the man featured in Oppenheim's first photo.

The exhibit at New York University's Grey Gallery was a retrospective by conceptual artist Patrick Ireland (born Brian O'Doherty) called "Beyond the White Cube." Many people also knew Ireland as a Professor of Art at Southampton College.

The show's title is perhaps the most fascinating element, coming from Ireland's famous critical essay stating that the white walls found in galleries " helped to determine the meaning of modern art as much as the artworks themselves."

Some of the works recalled the artist's exhibit at Southampton College several years ago: geometric abstractions where spatial relations between string and images on the wall were defined. A similar installation is currently presented with stunning results. Other series are equally invigorating, but often difficult to understand, like his "Structural Plays" examining language and location.

Finally, an important show at Cheim and Read, "Circa 70," again featured Lynda Benglis -- this time, her works accentuated feminism (and some say sensationalism) with sculptures resembling fecal matter and male genitalia. It's still provocative, so we can imagine the response during the early 1970s.

"Summer of Love" will be on view until Sept. 16. The films of Stan Vanderbeek will be shown this Sept. at "Artists Make Movies." Call the Pollock-Krasner House for info: 631-324-4929. Ms. Benglis' work will be on view through August 31 at Cheim and Read.