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Philip Iverson
Lonsdale Gallery, Toronto March 9 - April
15
Painting, and of all painting, Expressionist painting, has been a prime
object of criticism of post- modernists, who have earnestly claimed as
their own the simple truism that art is but a representation, not a mirroring
of the artist’s emotive intent. Philip Iverson’s recent Expressionist
paintings on wood and works on paper exemplify that this attack is not
only obvious but also unnecessary, for he and other adept Expressionists
have never claimed that their work equates with emotional truth. “I
work,” Iverson aptly observes, “both in a state of intellect
and of impulse.” Therefore, he should not be maligned for making
retrograde paintings, since the justification that would position his
paintings as such is unfounded. Instead, it should simply be determined
if his are good paintings. And they are.
Iverson is prolific, with twenty-eight works exhibited here, some as large
as 228.6 x 152.4 cm. This output, as well as the rapid spontaneity of
squiggly lines and squishy paint patches, shows him to be an intuitive
painter who is, indeed, in the best sense of the word, impulsive. Where
this quality shines is, with one notable exception, in his large-scale
works, where the sweeping gestures that define his art are given space
to roam free. One Foot In/One Foot Out (1999), for example, offers a grandiose
scale of 2.3 x 2.7 m. A starry, outer-space backdrop circumscribes a planetary
shape in cross section. Inside is a cornucopia of imagery, abstract form,
expressively rendered flowers, and in keeping with the title, feet, with
one stepping out into space. Size here does undoubtedly count, as the
notion of contemplating the universe in relation to these small body parts
works to great symbolic effect. What marks the large paintings as memorable
is the splendid virtuosity of paint handling, the whirls of paint and
the rapid electric line.
While these large works certainly made for a solid show, the one piece
outstanding as most jarringly original was not one of them. After the
Storm (1999), a 104 x 127 cm. ink and charcoal-on-paper work, differs
by way of this medium from all but one other work in the show. The charcoal
line, even more dramatic than the line in his paintings, carries a nervous
high energy that effectively contrasts black patches, with drips of ink
serving in inter mediary fashion between the two extremes. So perfect
is the balance, the ensuing sense of completeness utterly satisfies.
Philip Iverson continues to demonstrate that he is an artist worthy of
more attention. He is an artist who succeeds for his ability to juggle
emotional polarities, not to mention the often opposing worlds of intuitive
and intellectual inspiration.
— Earl Miller
Philip lverson, Nagano, 1999, oil on wood, 35.6 x 43.2 cm. Photo courtesy
Lonsdale Gallery.
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