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10/2/2003

Adam Straus

Nohra Haime Gallery, New York

SUBLIMIS INTERRUPTUS

"Solitude, in the sense of being often alone, is essential to any depth of meditation or character; and solitude in the presence of natural beauty and grandeur, is the cradle of thoughts and aspirations which are not only good for the individual, but which society could ill do without."
John Stuart Mill, 1848

NEW YORK, NY - A new group of 12 landscape paintings by Adam Straus will be on view at Nohra Haime Gallery from February 12 through March 15, 2003. The exhibition, Sublimis Interruptus, uses landscape to discuss man's role in the natural environment during a time when receding glaciers, disappearing shorelines and unusual climate changes are occurring.

The oil paintings, which are encased in lead, highlight the intense beauty of the natural world, while commenting wryly about man's influence on it. "Now that we've changed the atmosphere, no matter where you go on the planet, it is impossible to get away from our effect on it," notes Straus.

A Very Early Spring, 2002, offers a bleak polar landscape which is melting out of the picture frame. A bright red flag abruptly marks a spot. "Similar flags were used to identify supplies of oil left by previous explorers in Antarctica," explains Straus. In King of the Mountain, 2002, a lone figure stands on a summit covered with snow, shooting his rifle into nothing in particular as a storm comes in or recedes. The artist comments on a children's game that has throughout history extended itself into politics.

A number of paintings do not show the effects of man, rather they focus on the yearning for a landscape that is unchanged by man. "Nature is becoming an artifact. The ability to get away and be at peace with nature is becoming more and more rare," Straus explains. Montauk Morning: Dune in Fog, 2002, offers "an occasion to actually see an expanse with no one around."

Donald Kuspit has written recently about Straus:
"In general, Straus's paintings are historically self-conscious, looking backward to a lost utopia even as they acknowledge the unhappy present, as befits the postmodern situation, fraught with skepticism and irony, not to say cynicism about the future. His paintings are in fact nostalgic for the masterpiece - the consummate painting, carefully crafted and considered, that is, very well made as well as deeply reflective - and their framing suggests an attempt to revive it."

Image: Adam Straus - King of the mountain

OPENING: Tuesday, February 11, 6- 8 PM

HOURS: Tuesday - Saturday 10 AM to 6 PM
For further information contact Clarita Fodor

Nohra Haime Gallery
41 East 57th Street
6th Floor
New York, NY 10022
(212)888-3550 Fax: (212)888-7869

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