FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

8 PAINTINGS

Vija Celmins, Philip Guston, Jasper Johns, Giorgio Morandi, Jackson Pollock, Myron Stout, Philip Taaffe and Terry Winters

MAY 3 - JUNE 6, 1997

Luhring Augustine is pleased to announce 8 Paintings, a group painting exhibition curated by artist Steve Wolfe.  The exhibition is comprised of one painting by eight artists, including Vija Celmins, Philip Guston, Jasper Johns, Giorgio Morandi, Jackson Pollock, Myron Stout, Philip Taaffe and Terry Winters. The following is a statement written by Steve Wolfe regarding the exhibition.

As an avid admirer of contemporary painting and one who believes strongly in the merits of an interactive group exhibition, I have attempted to combine these interests in this show of eight paintings.

The paintings were selected by listing mid to late twentieth century painters about whose work I’m most enthusiastic, and bearing in mind the variation in scale of both the paintings and the exhibition space, limiting the number of objects to eight.  In order to create a sense of cohesiveness within the exhibition, I narrowed the selection of painting to that which is either obscurely or blatantly rooted in imagery, yet is essentially about paint and the act of painting.

The intent of the exhibition is meant to be as simple and direct as possible; that is, to present a group of beautiful paintings in a manner that allows optimal viewing within a context that is both informative and unusual.

8 Paintings is Wolfe’s second curatorial effort, the first being a group exhibition at the Daniel Weinberg Gallery in San Francisco in 1995.  The exhibition included paintings, drawings and sculpture by Richard Artschwager, Peter Cain, Vija Celmins, Chuck Close, Joseph Cornell, Robert Gober, George Stoll and Steve Wolfe.

For further information, please contact Michele Maccarone at (212) 219 9600.