Real and abstract

Ben Moore's paintings, in the exhibition coming to the Prince Street Gallery, depict subjects including landscapes, still lifes and cityscapes with various degrees of realism and abstraction. But the purpose in each painting is the same: to delineate the formal relationship between shapes and colors on an abstract surface, while keeping a natural vision. The result is pictures that work on many levels. Above: "The Garden," oil on canvas, 20 ins. x 24 ins., 1993.

Paintings by Ben Moore,
at Prince Street Gallery, 121 Wooster St.;
Dec. 17 - Jan. 12, Tues. - Sun., 12 - 6 p.m.
226-9402.

Ben Moore
BLUE MOUNTAIN GALLERY

Focusing on landscapes, figures and still life, Ben Moore distributes colors that retain the palpability of he brush and the faint homage implied. The subject, hough at the forefront, is sublimated into an overall composition that has the resonance of Roualt and the brilliantly slack light of Fairfileld Porter. Immersed in a Formalist style, Moore says the subject is not so important as is how it's painted, the design element, the color, the depth. 

In one studio still life three planes-window, table and cloth-balance the organic shape of a bouquet. In the landscapes leafy, verdurous plants are similarly assigned o break up the regular lines of humid barns and introspective porch rails. "I like to use receding perspectives and flatten it at the same time. I pick an unusual setting and work the scene so there is a perfectly harmonious tension. I like to manipulate the forms that fit together in an interlocking, abstract formal way, but then the eyes perceive the depth and that ension between what lies on the surface and the distance I create is what interests me." 

There's a difference between pretty and beautiful and Ben Moore is investigating that edge with skill and conviction. 

Darrin Crane

Recent Public Shows

The Garden
oil on canvas, 20" x 24", 1993

BEN MOORE
PAINTINGS

December 17 - January 12, 1994
Opening Reception: Friday, December 17
5 - 8 p.m.

PRINCE STREET GALLERY

121 Wooster Street
New York, NY 10012
(212) 226-9402

14th Street
oil on canvas, 60" x 68" 1991.
Photo: Bob Sasson

• BILL GEENEN
• BEN MOORE
• BILL SCOTT

November 27 - December 16, 1992

Opening Reception:
Friday, December 4, 5 - 8 p.m.

PRINCE STREET GALLERY

121 Wooster Street
New York, NY 10012
(212) 226-9402

Hours: Tuesday - Sunday, 12 - 6

Other Displays

Hyperion Records
Lowell Liebermann
Piano Concertos
(CD Cover)
Artwork: Fort Tryon Park, New York - Morning

Hyperion Records
Stephen Hough
Piano Music by Federico Mompou
(CD Cover)

Hyperion Records
Stephen Hough
New York Variations
(CD Cover)
Artwork: 14th Street (New York)

Ben Moore: 14 Songs
Published by G. Shirmer
On sale now at Amazon.com