It was a radical departure, in the 1980s, when Brice Marden moved from making monochromes and multi-panel paintings, to paintings inspired by his own drawings and calligraphy, with quixotic and mesmerizing lines. In a contemporary interview he predicted that, given time, the shift would seem more natural than it did then. He’s been borne out in that assertion more and more, and his current show of new work gives a pretty resounding verification. It includes several new monochrome pieces — some alone, and others, such as Eastern Moss (2012-15), presented as suites. But he hasn’t abandoned his drawing-influenced work. There are several linear paintings, including the Nevis Stele series (2007-15). Uphill with Center (2012-15, above) shows a synthesis of the two modes, and is, perhaps as a consequence, the most unexpected and the hardest to get one’s head around. Miasmatic lines run into solid blocks of color, which in turn reveal their passive, liquid materiality as they spill over a margin at the bottom of each of the four panels. Where once viewers were challenged to trace Marden’s lines, here he asks them to trace the process of his formalism and his use of color and material. NOAH DILLON
Brice Marden, Uphill With Center, 2012-2015. Oil on linen, five panels, 48 1/8 x 192 5/8 inches overall. Courtesy of the artist and Matthew Marks Gallery.
522 and 526 W 22nd Street (between 10th and 11th avenues), New York City, 212 243 0200.
On view through December 24.
print