Dan's Papers - December 7, 2007 - Art Commentary With Marion Wolberg Weiss

The term "fine art" has always fascinated this critic, perhaps because it is often an intangible and subjective determination. Is its definition based on aesthetics or perceptions? For example, does it mean "good art," rather than "outsider art?" Does it signify works created by established artists rather than emerging ones? Does it mean paintings that are expensive?

While all these criteria may have validity, Butler's Fine Art Gallery in East Hampton gives "fine art" some added dimensions where the term becomes not only a concept but a state of mind as well.

It's a place where the viewer feels comfortable and not intimidated by the art, where a one-on-one connection is established between the spectator and the objects. In a word, where art can be appreciated, valued and experienced.

The current exhibit is no exception. A personal favorite is work by Gertrude Barrer, a member of a select group known as "Indian Space Painters." While she showed at important venues and was co-founder of an avant-gard publication, Iconograph, she is frankly unknown to yours truly. Unlike Will Barnett's paintings (another Indian space painter), her designs are muted, subtle, but still spiritual. Her "Dreamer Dreaming" is one example, where simplicity belies the myriad of meanings conveyed by the bird and face: the work recalls such diverse sources as Chagall and the Ab "dream time."

That sense of timelessness is also present in Eugene Brodsky's "Storyboard: Views/Italy," images put on blocks that resemble a "stream-of-consciousness." Come to think of it, Ms. Barrer's works evoke a similar feeling. Oddly enough, there's the same abandonment to time and place in Wolf Kahn's pastels on paper; his trees are a perfect place to discover one's source.

Painters known for their Abstract Expressionism, like Herman Cherry and Esteban Vicente, also represent this kind of being lost in space. Consider Mr. Cherry's vertical, vibrant shapes that beckon the viewer to enter a spiritual realm. So, too, does Mr. Vicente's "Simetria," his yellow hues reminding us somehow of Ms. Barrer's colors as well as her archetypical images that remain in our minds and hearts.

The current show will be on view during the month of December. Call 631-267-0193 for gallery hours.