Review
Editor's Note: Some of the liveliest creative thinking happens as a result of a difference of opinion, and Resolve40 Editor-in-Chief Mark Wiener is always quick to point out to others that he and I don't always agree, especially about art. Sometimes he likes something, I don't. Or vice-versa. Sometimes we perceive the content or historical context of a piece in opposite ways, and occasionally, we debate what type of art we are actually viewing. Case in point, our recent visit to Berend Strik's solo exhibition, "Stitches in Time," at Tilton. - Linda DiGusta
Sky House by Berend Strik - 2008
"Look at these paintings!" she said as they the gallery. "The surface, the color, so subtle. Let's get closer..."
"These aren't paintings," he said. Which was technically correct, since for the last 2 decades Strik has been creating unique works of art by embroidering, literally and figuratively upon and innately multiple form, photographs.
"But why not, we 'paint with words' when we write, the verb paint is used as a metaphor for a transformation, related to color - which is exactly what he does to the photos when he applies other the materials, creating new points of focus and depth."
"Yes," he said, " but they show no consistent, outstanding mark."
"The dictionary says painting can also refer to covering with color, as if with paint, and one of the roots of the word paint itself means 'embroider' in Latin. Why can't we extend our definition?"
"These applications are thread or cut shapes, they are objects, not marks or gestures. Painting clearly shows the hand of the artist, the brush, the spill - it's an action, frozen in time."
She shook her head. "I just don't see these as collages. The elements work together as one, you have to get very close before you become aware of how many different materials he actually used."
"Collages they still are, but as collages, they are in a class of their own. Seamless."
A visual artist invites us into his world via visual media.
De-unicefed by Berend Strik 2008
To understand, we need to see. To see, we must first be willing to look. Sometimes, we are tested by difficult material and choose to look away. In that sense, it is the first job of the artist to make us choose to keep looking.
The content of Berend Strik's base photography, some taken on his recent trip to Africa, is emotionally moving, sometimes melancholy or menacing. But his fine treatment of the surface with color and texture draw the viewer close, they keep us looking, so that we see actually more of what's behind the work that we would if it were not "covered." With his materials, Strik first engages us in a dialogue about the nature of his free-standing and wall pieces, creating a relationship that invites us personally to the source of his inspiration, along with all the emotion it calls forth.
And, we get it.
Berend Strik @ Jack Tilton Gallery through June 21st.
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