Painting primeval
Robert Goodman's latest paintings catch him moving from his abstract compositions of sharp geometric forms that seemed to be in the process of exploding to a softer, curvier, quasi-representational abstraction influenced by the tropical environment of south Florida, where he grew up. The paintings that make up his exhibition, "Jungle Gothic," at Seraphin Gallery, are also darker than his earlier works, although some of his signature fluorescent pinks and oranges glimmer through the shade.
These paintings have none of Goodman's shattering, over-the-top urban energy. Instead, the dense compositions of works such as Pyramid (2011) and Fever (2011) bring to mind swamps, heat, and ecstatic religious trances. One's eye is pulled into the depths of palms and cypresses by passages that look like clearings and rivers.
In Goodman's earlier paintings, there was intentionally no there there. By contrast, these paintings envelop a viewer in a sense of place. It may be the Everglades or Goodman's personal vision of nature, but it draws you in.
Seraphin Gallery, 1108 Pine St., 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. 215-923-7000 or www.seraphingallery.com. Through Dec. 4.Good show
After a year-and-a-half run of excellent shows under director Travis Heck, Jolie Laide Gallery will close in December. But the gallery is going out on a high note with its darkly beautiful "Bleach," inspired by Nirvana's debut album and pairing the sculpture of Alex Da Corte and the paintings of Paul DeMuro.
