PALM SPRINGS, CA--A little bit of The Hamptons is making a big splash at the Palm Springs Fine Art Fair this weekend. Taking center stage is artist Jennifer Bartlett who receives a mini-retrospective and the art fair's Lifetime Achievement Award. Bartlett's work will be the subject of a solo show at the Parrish Art Museum in Water Mill, NY this spring. Bartlett is based in Brooklyn, NY and Amangansett, NY on the East End of Long Island.
"Jennifer Bartlett has been an important part of the artistic conversation since the late 1960’s," said Rick Friedman, producer of the Palm Springs Fine Art Fair. "During her remarkable 50 year career, her work has transformed in size, technique and subject matter within her distinctive style of painting. The Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes the body of work to date and the influence of her work on a future generations of artists."
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"Earth: Weekend (JB 1014)" by Jennifer Bartlett, 1993-94. Oil on Canvas, 78 x 108 inches. Courtesy Imago Gallery.
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"50 Years on the Grid" represents a condensed look at Bartlett's 50-year career. Seven works ranging from the 1970s to the present were selected for the Palm Springs Fine Art Fair exhibition. The show is curated by Imago Galleries of Palm Desert, CA.
On February 14, 2014, Bartlett will be on hand from 11:30 a.m. to noon to discuss the art on view. Joining the talk will be curated Jaon LiPuma, Imago gallerist Leisa Austin and arts writer Steven Biller. Bartlett will also be awarded the 2014 Lifetime Achievement Award.
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"24 Hours: Elegy, 2 A.M., Small Raggedy Ann" by Jennifer Bartlett, 1992-93. Oil and silkscreen on canvas, 60 x 42 inches. Courtesy Imago Gallery.
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Bartlett is known for monumental multi-canvas oil paintings that make use of meticulous gridlines to help guide the viewer across scenes that may seem familiar but move beyond to take on new meaning. She was one of the first female painters to arise from the 1960s modern art boom and gain commercial success and critical acclaim, according to Imago Gallery.
Her work is known for breaking boundaries and for ranging between highly controlled abstract works and painterly realism. It also is known for flummoxing critics and skirting exact explanation.
The condensed look at Bartlett's work at the Palm Springs Fine Art Fair mirrors her first American museum survey that's traveling on the East Coast. "Jennifer Bartlett: History of the Universe - Works 1970 - 2011 opened at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia and was held from June 27 to Oct. 13, 2013.
It travels next to the Parrish Art Museum, who organized the show. The exhibition opens there on April 27, 2014 and remains on view through July 13, 2014.
"Jennifer Bartlett: History of the Universe" includes works from all of Barlett’s major series including the “House Paintings”, “In the Garden” series, the “Air: 24 Hours” series, the autobiographical “Earth Paintings”, the “Word Paintings" and recent works that depict houses, trees and plants surrounding her homes in Amagansett and Brooklyn, NY.
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"Amagansett Diptych #7" by Jennifer Bartlett, 2007. Oil on canvas, 48 x 96 inches. Courtesy of Richard Gray Gallery and Imago Gallery.
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One of Bartlett's most recognizable work, Rhapsody, premiered in 1976 at the Paula Cooper Gallery in New York City. The piece was made up of 987 steel plates that spanned 150 feet and created a large grid. Bartlett worked on the enormous multi-theme, multi-part painting over a single year before unveiling the work at Paula Cooper, according to Imago Gallery.
"Rhapsody was absolutely groundbreaking and new, incorporating the space itself by wrapping paint around walls and corners," Klaus Ottmann is quoted as stating in a New York Times article on Bartlett and "Jennifer Bartlett: History of the Universe - Works 1970 - 2011)". Ottmann curated the traveling survey for The Parrish Art Museum.
Bartlett's color palette also reflects her Long Beach, CA roots, according to Imago Galleries, who represents her work. Bartlett's color choices channel colors found in California's "...varied and bold flora and brings to light the artist's appreciation for the ocean," states the gallery.
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"Earth: Weekend (JB 1015)" by Jennifer Bartlett, 1993-95. Oil on canvas, 50 x 69 x 3/8 inches. Courtesy Imago Gallery.
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Bartlett's work has been exhibited worldwide. Her art is part of collections held by The Metropolitan Museum of Art and the The Whitney Museum of American Art (NYC), the Museum of Contemporary Art (Chicago), the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Israel Museum (Jerusalem), the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Tokyo), Tate Modern (London), the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (Philadelphia) and more.
A traveling retrospective of Bartlett's work took place in 1985 and included stops at the Brooklyn Museum (NYC), the Walker Art Center (MN), the Carnegie Institute (PA) and others.
BASIC FACTS: The Palm Springs Fine Art Fair takes place from Feb. 14 - 17, 2014 at the Palm Springs Convention Center, 277 N Avenida Caballeros, Palm Springs CA 92262. www.palmspringsfineartfair.com.
Jennifer Bartlet's work is being exhibited by Imago Gallery at the Palm Springs Fine Art Fair at Booth 404. The gallery is based at 45-450 Highway 74, Palm Desert, CA 92260. www.imagogalleries.com.
"Jennifer Bartlett: History of the Universe - Works 1970 - 2011" will be exhibited at the Parrish Art Museum from April 27 - July 13, 2014. The Parrish is located at 279 Montauk Hwy, Water Mill, NY 11976. www.parrishart.org.
RELATED: "Jennifer Bartlett Gets a Museum Retrospective" by Hilarie M. Sheets for The New York Times. Published June 20, 2013.
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