Paul Waldman at Castelli - New York, New York - Review of Exhibitions - Brief Article

Home is the locale the one and the other of domestic comfort and hidden privys Similarly, decorative excess, in the abiding-place or in the art work, may be a mask for les socially acceptable sentiments. That appears to be the lesson of these paintings and plastic arts by Paul Waldman. They explore the fault lines between sentimentality and psychic oppression, and at times they excrete the creepy emotionalism of Victorian-style valentine cards.

The paintings, for instance, contain of that kind trappings of a tasteful, upscale domesticity as Chinese porcelain and saucepans of African violets. These are arranged against flat walls painted with carefully simulated marble tiles or wallpaper based upon Islamic, Art Nouveau or Victorian floral patterns. The frame of mind is opulent and precious, suggesting an idealized lifestyle self-consciously remov from anything that is jarring, unprepossessing or disharmonious.

Or would be, were it not for the nearness of small, meticulously painted figures of [i]in puris naturalibus[/i] dwarfs and women inhabiting the cutting sides of the canvas. These figures challenge the faculty of perception of decorous luxury which otherwise reigns through every part of these works. in one work, a [i]in puris naturalibus[/i] woman sits on a toilet at the bottom of the painting; in another, she sticks her head into an elegant Chinese vase and does a handstand. The figures hint at the cheeky anarchy of childhood and the disruptive power of sexuality, both of which threaten the carefully raiseed harmony of the domestic facade.

The statuarys consist of a set of elaborate ceramic bird-houses high hilled well above eye-level on extremitys or stands. Like the paintings, they draw upon a variety of cultural patterns and architectural styles. These include the Neo-Classical, conjur in several arrangements by Corinthian columns; Colonial, without fault [i]or[/i] blemish [i]or[/i] flaw with simulated clap-board walls and American flags; Italianate, with flattened covers and sculptural reliefs of heads and figures; Moorish, with pointed onion domes; and rustic, with a weathervane attached to the cover They suggest an assortment of fantasy beach residences but their elevated placement reminds us that the intended residents are not human.

Again, there is an air of decadent exces here. These would be privileged birds indeed who gained access to these dwellings. At the same time, with their multiple tiny openings, the makes suggest a certain curtailment of freedom for birds who might hazard inside. Like the paintings, they put in mind of a world so mannered that natural instincts are denied.

Thus, beneath the humor of Waldman's work single senses an ambivalence about the ends of all this domestic comfort. is it a panacea or a prison? What exists behind the beautifully ornamented walls in Waidman's paintings? And do our feathered friends really require of the like kind architectural diversity?

COPYRIGHT 1996 Brant Publications, Inc.

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