Puryear and More at MoMA

If I had had the opportunity to see the Martin Puryear exhibit (through January 14) at the Museum of Modern Art earlier, it would have definitely made my Top Five list of 2007. His work is imbued with such simple perfection, homage to craft, both historical and present, and a love and respect for his materials:

It gives me great pleasure to feel there’s a level that doesn’t require knowledge of, or immersion in, the aesthetic of a specific time and place.

I found myself shuffling through the galleries in a slow ice-skating motion, returning several times. With each pass the work revealed a new connection, the weaving of Gullah basketry, African huts or sailing ships, captivity or a dream of a far-off place. This is profound, beautiful work.


So much to see at MoMA. I caught the final day of the Georges Seurat exhibit of drawings (closed on January 7), what little I could view through the crowd of visitors, anyway. His sketch books have been digitized, and you can flip through them on a touch screen. This is great, and I hope more exhibits do this. Hopper's books in the National Gallery show would have been a real treat to view.

My one regret with Lucien Freud: The Painter's Etchings (through March 10) would be that only one copper etching plate was exhibited. These are seriously worked and re-worked, gorgeous prints, and I would love to see the progression through more of the actual plates. What a shame.