 | Ever since Picasso and Braque cut out pieces of newspaper ads and began including them in their paintings, contemporary artists have seen popular culture as a potentially rich source of material. Much of this sort of borrowing is in evidence at the current show by Milwaukee artist Fred Stonehouse, at the Eyre-Moore Gallery in Pioneer Square. But the effect of these dark, sometimes funny paintings is far removed from the world of advertisement and illustration that is their source. Here with our review is KUOW art critic, Gary Faigin. A good introduction to the bittersweet complexities of the work of Fred Stonehouse is a small painting called "Welt Meister," a beautifully painted little gem with a very involved pedigree. If some paintings are thoroughbreds, this one is surely a mutt. |
