In these works, Joel Shapiro extends the investigations of his recent suspended sculptures [Pace Gallery, 2010; Museum Ludwig, 2011; Rice University Art Gallery, 2012] that explore the dispersion of form and color in space, exchanging the three - dimensional space of the gallery for the two - dimensional plane of the paper, and industrial cordage and pigment -
soaked wood forms for aqueous eruptions of line and color in gouache and charcoal.
Balula's practice manifests in a wide range of
forms, which record the effects of nature such as charring
wood,
soaking canvases in rivers or burying paintings in soil.