There are a number of venues where one always expects to see local painting, one of which is Edge Zones art space. Granted the current Edge Zones space is smaller than the previous facility but the programming has continued as we have expected with a combination of local and Caribbean focused exhibitions. The current exhibition, Painting, features a number of artists that have been widely exhibited in S. Florida: Kyle Barnette, David Brieske, Daniel Fiorda, Robert Huff, Francois Ilnseher, Hector Madera, Jay Ore, Mark Osterman, Raul Perdomo, and Claudia Scalise.

Painters are always seeking new ways to paint. Formalism or ideas of utopianism, social critique and desire can all be experienced by a viewer in a split second. This outmaneuvers any other art form. A book takes hours to read, a movie hours to watch, but a painting washes over its onlooker in a flash. [EdgeZones press release]

The tidy collection of paintings that have been assembled originated from a call-to-artists. That in itself does not remove the intentionally motivated ideas of each artist but, it does illuminate the need for more dialog and collaboration amongst artists, in this writer’s opinion. By that I mean how many other artists are working with similar issues and ideas that could possibly be grouped together into this type of exhibition? You know, a more expansive survey featuring several venues might be in order. Let’s see how things play out over the next few months and see if some local curator picks up the mantle.

No matter how quickly a painting washes over its onlooker, the paintings that linger in the mind long afterward are the ones that are rich in complexity, and stimulating visually and intellectually. While not earth shattering, each artist has brought us a sampling of significant variety which is only a glimpse of painting as we know it.

Robert Huff (above and below)

Claudia Scalise (above and below)

Daniel Fiorda (above and below)

Edge Zones art space 47 NE 25th St. Miami, Fl 33127 Tel. 305 576-4001