



Artist Jennifer Bartlett has been exploring the image of the archetypal house since the 1970s. For her current exhibition at Marianne Boesky Gallery, The House was Quiet and the World was Calm: Jennifer Bartlett 1970–2014, a variety of these works are on display. It’s interesting to think of the traditional basic shape of the house, one often used to draw a house as a child, here expanded upon and explored in various ways and mediums. The viewer is also challenged to think about what they imagine when they think of the concept of house, of home.
From the press release–
… For Bartlett, the appeal of the house lies, in part, in its incredible universality. The simple square crowned with a triangle conjures an expansive array of emotions, memories, and associations across the spectrum of individuals. And in the U.S., it holds a particular place in the national psyche—a symbol of the deeply entrenched notion of the American dream. Subjected to Bartlett’s ongoing and systematic explorations of painting and printing techniques, however, the house in instances is flattened, reformulated, and distorted to a range of formal and emotional effects.
This exhibition closes 12/21/19.
