Friday,
June 14, 2023
Inquirer Art Critic
Dense and denser.
Wisconsin artist T.L. Solien's monotypes at the Print Center contrast totally.
They're exuberant and cacophonous, a melange of references from art history and
pop culture - especially illustration and animation - that coalesce into frothy
neo-expressionism.
Solien has described these images as
"autobiographic constructs" that explore qualities of identity. They
are simultaneously serious, sad, funny and even goofy.� How that might relate to identity is
difficult to understand, unless Solien is describing the complexities of
personality, in which total clarity is elusive.
To an untutored observer, the prints seem more
concerned with debunking the idea of cuteness in American culture. This is more
apparent in a companion show of Solien's paintings in the Klein Gallery at
University City Science Center.
The nine oils are much larger and more complex
compositionally than the monotypes. Their animation characters, particularly
those from Disney, also are a bit more prominent.� Several paintings feature a cartoonish, blond-haired female head
whose face is usually obscured. This seems to be the most direct reference to
the negation of cuteness, but it could also refer to ambiguity of identity.
Both
Solien's prints and his paintings are difficult to penetrate because there
aren't any obvious entry points.� Some
art-historical references, such as cubist distortion, are easily recognizable.
Yet the whole remains elusive.� The
somber painting called Body and the Blood exudes a strong scent of
tragedy. That may be Solien's underlying theme, artfully disguised.
Klein Gallery,
3600 Market St.; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. Through June 29.
�215-387-2262 or www.kleinartgallery.org
http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/entertainment/visual_arts/3468006.htm