First Friday Focus

by Lori Hill



Detail of Ron Isaac’s Night Sky (1999), acryllic on birch plywood.

InLiquid.com @ Painted Bride

While making the Internet a legitimate outlet for all types of artists is admirable, there’s no denying the power of the physical interaction between a viewer and a work of art. So with just that in mind, Rachel Zimmerman, the director of the online art and design network InLiquid.com, and Lisa Melandri, curator of Moore College’s Levy Gallery, have brought InLiquid artists to life at the Painted Bride. "Photo Transformation" sees the photographer taking the familiar subject of the body and turns it on its head. But rather than going for total deconstruction, these artists maintain a level of reverence and awe for the human form that results in visual poetry. The most obvious example of this is Amy Kosh’s series of works featuring a nude woman in a dark, lonely space, both on and off a stiff white board. One, titled View of Death on a Table, is chillingly presented, from the unlit chandelier, to the unanchored window tilted up against the board, to the dirty soles of the subject’s feet horizontal on the white plank. Other artists include Lene Keingarsky, Michael McCarthy and Pete Checchia.

Opening reception Fri., Feb. 2, 5-7 p.m., through Feb. 24, 230 Vine St., 215-925-9949.

Snyderman Gallery

Kentucky artist Ron Isaacs’ eye trickery continues to evolve. For years, he has reproduced items of clothing — a glove, a suit jacket — in light constructions of wood (Finnish birch plywood, to be precise) and then paints over them in acrylics in naturalistic colors. He then layers leaves, twigs, even old photographs, also fashioned out of thinly cut plywood, over the clothing. For his show at Snyderman this month, "Not What It Seems," Isaacs goes beyond couture, such as the piece in which a woman’s face, made of flowers and leaves (wooden, of course), is placed inside the outline of a house; meanwhile, the old trompe l’oeil effects return, with the woman’s bent plywood finger folding over on itself.

Opening reception, Fri., Feb 2, 5:30-8:30 p.m., through Feb. 24, 303 Cherry St., 215-238-9576.



	Randy C. Bolton’s Nature Morte (1997), nova print.

Schmidt/Dean Gallery

Schmidt/Dean this month takes the rules of the color wheel to task with its show of compositions in contrast, "Pink/Red." Randy Bolton contributes a large digital print still life that gallery owner Chris Schmidt calls "atomic" and indeed, its fruit positively glows. The pixels are big and bad and unashamed. Often inspired by children’s book illustrations, Bolton prints them large and luminous, giving them a woven look (he’s printed on actual fabric, too). Also look for Robert Straight’s kaleidoscopic painting and Brooke Moyer’s copper leaf/resin construction. By the way, this is one of the last shows to be installed on the walls of Schmidt/Dean’s 12-year-old Walnut Street location. Like other Rittenhouse Square-area establishments, the gallery can’t keep up with the skyrocketing rents taking over the buildings there. So the search begins for another space, but until then, it’ll be double duty for the Spruce Street location.

Runs Feb. 2-March 10, 1636 Walnut St., 215-546-7212, and 1721 Spruce St., 215-546-9577.

And Then There’s…

Don’t just sit there, there’s art to be stolen. Once again, Dissentia Curatorial Services (a.k.a. Nick Cassway and Chris Wilson) have disposed of all conventional methods of putting on shows in favor of a let’s-see-what-happens-if-we-do-this approach. "Steal This Show," hosted by Vox Populi, proposes that viewers simply take what they like from the gallery, with two stipulations for the wannabe thieves: 1) be surreptitious and 2) tell them why you stole it on the postcard you’ll find on the back of the hot object. Anonymous responses will be posted on the Dissentia website (www.dissentia.com). The show will remain up through the end of the month, with red "STOLEN" signs where the art used to be.

Opening reception Fri., Feb. 2, 5-9 p.m., through Feb. 25, 141 N. Second St., 215-925-1841.