Dan's Papers - March 5, 2010 -Art Commentary

While Florida is known for glorious sunshine and tropical weather, those conditions didn't exist this winter. It is grey and cold a lot of the time. What is consistent, however, is the art: bright and hot, like the climate should be.

There are other distinctive qualities that define local art in Florida, distinguishing it greatly from our own East End aesthetics. It is mostly colorful, bold and decorative - formal traits that might be frowned upon here in the Hamptons. Yet the emphasis on texture, materials, layering and collage gives a vitality to the work that's energizing and often arresting.

Lo and behold, East Ender sculptor Linda Stein is currently in a group show at Longstreth-Golberg Art in Naples, a large space that's as big and bold as its art. The venue is impressive for many reasons, but mainly because it makes a salient statement in its industrial location far from Naples' affluent Fifth Avenue. (It's like the difference between Manhattan's Madison Avenue and Chelsea.)

Even so, gallery director Peg Longstreth-Goldberg has selected diverse pieces that are subtle and substantial in their own way. Good examples are Stein's familiar torsos of knights, particularly well known in New York. They not only represent the material aspect of Florida art, but also signify the artist's signature work. Especially outstanding is one that's a collage, framed in a glass case. The paper scraps celebrate the art of calligraphy, perhaps derived from Stein's own collection. And while the sculpture possesses Stein's recurring idea of strength and majesty, it is delicate and vulnerable as well. Could the work also introduce another focus concerning medieval knights: the concept of intellect (writing)?

Texture and technique are also predominant in the exhibit, namely the hand-blown glass flowers by Beverly Albrets, Richard Currier's abstract landscape, "Passage," recalling Hampton artist Cynthia Knox, and Mark Chatterley's impressive glazed ceramics.

Hand-blown glass is not only a popular material in Florida art, but the subject of the current show at the Naples Museum of Art; while Dale Chihuly's glass is a familiar sight to those who frequent East Hampton's LongHouse Reserve, there are pieces at the Museum which are simply astounding, including his characteristic ebb and flow of liquid in "Black Ebony with Lime Stripes." However, his most outstanding work is an installation of glass flowers installed on the ceiling, its reflective light gracing the walls. It is truly mesmerizing.

There are other local artists who warrant recognition, including Richard Rosen whose work won "Best in Show" last year at the Naples National Art Festival. His figurative sculptures, particularly, are distinctive, with separate personalities. Such personalities remind us of Montauk's Diane Mayo whose ceramics often feature life-like animals. Rosen's geometric shapes are also intriguing, seen in other pieces; they are also indicative of color and texture apparent in Florida art.

Shirley Dunkle, who shares space in a studio complex, is one of the few artists who uses technique to mirror natural forms; her abstract pieces in earth colors recall primitive landscapes; conversely, Dunkle's transfer pieces derived from magazine images are contemporary and colorful, yet still muted.

While most of the art we saw didn't come from nature sources, there's plenty of nature, per se, where "art" can be found. One is at the Naples Zoo. Watching the male lion and leopards in their natural habitat is like viewing sculpture, so quiet and pristine are the animals.

In Sanibel Island, a boat trip to Tarpan Bay features pelicans perched among mangrove trees; they are also so still that they resemble sculptures. Nature in the "wild," is an experience that is truly aesthetic.

So, too, are the shell beaches in Sanibel. Although the beaches aren't as "clean" as ours in the Hamptons, the shells are unusual. They are also big, bold and decorative, just like the art in Florida.

Call 239-514-2773 for information about the exhibit at Naples' Longstreth-Goldberg Art, or see images on plgart.com