LJ DOUGLAS, “evo-devo.” Early on in Thomas Pynchon’s magnus opus “Gravity’s Rainbow” there exists an absolutely gorgeous passage wherein he describes a breakfast consisting of an endless array of banana-themed dishes. He writes: “…banana sandwiches, banana casseroles, mashed bananas molded in the shape of a British lion rampant, blended into batter for French toast…tall cruets of pale banana syrup to pour oozing over banana waffles…banana croissants and banana kerplach, and banana oatmeal and banana jam and banana bread…” and so on and so forth. With respect to the passage, it is a subtle reminder that a writer must first and foremost love words and that the reader, in turn, must love searching for the nuance that lurks beneath the surface of every sentence. L.J. Douglas’ current show feels and reads awfully similar: there is the conceptual armature the artist has established that forges her interest in genetic memory with her childhood in the Pennsylvania Dutch country—but it is the charming colors and white noise of lush encaustic that “oozes” along the gallery walls in an extended, songlike meditation on the all too surreal realm where art meets science that emphasizes that reading—or looking—is not a passive act. (Steven Wirth) Through December 29 at Alfedena Gallery
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