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From: Kenkins Category: Art Date: 08 April 2007 Time: 01:56 PM Review: Very Abstract and Hyper Figurative Curated by Jens Hoffmann http://www.thomasdane.com/ "The overall exhibition design plays on the architecture of a museum of western antiquities. The works of 46 individual artists are displayed within two large vitrines normally used to present artifacts within a museum of cultural history: one dedicated to figurative painting and one to abstract works. This device creates the possibility for critical distance from and reflection on the practice of painting, which is presented as an artistic phenomenon from another historical or cultural context. " Artists in the exhibition include: Markus Amm, Hurvin Anderson, Matthew Antezzo, Brian Calvin, Varda Caivano, Arabella Campbell, John Currin, Peter Doig, Kaye Donachie, Milena Dragicevic, Marlene Dumas, Slawomir Elsner, Bernard Frize, Ellen Gallagher, Wayne Gonzalez, Mark Grotjahn, Andrew Grassie, Wade Guyton, Eberhard Havekost, Lothar Hempel, Olaf Holzapfel, Sergej Jensen, Chantal Joffe, Chris Johanson, Jordan Kantor, Udomsak Krisanamis, Martin Kippenberger, Stefan Kürten, Sarah Morris, Frank Nitsche, Albert Oehlen, Christopher Orr, Laura Owens, Elisabeth Peyton, Michael Raedecker, Anselm Reyle, Clare Rojas, Wilhelm Sasnal, Maaike Schoorel, Norbert Schwontkowski, Anj Smith, Dirk Stewen, Neal Tait, Phoebe Unwin, Dan Walsh, Jakub Julian Ziolkowski. Ok, ok, already. Where's the review? Great show. You should see it. Paintings shown like specimens. Good paintings. The outstanding one is Jakub Julian Ziolkowski. The show is unusually ambitious. The stairway is scary, wood panels and carpet. A dodgy drinking den, no an art gallery. What's it mean. That painting is a dinousaur to be 'trined. That ab and fig are ridiculous categories. Yes just read the press release, that's it. This show shows how important thinking hard about showing art is. It makes a very very very big difference. What's it all mean. Something. Which is more than it sometimes seems to. If painting is dead, then there's a lot to like about the exquisite corpse. Don't know. The distance is worth it. And what do we see! I don't know. Something like the a little life amongst death. A green shoot in the hard cold scorched earth. Hope.