Adolph Rosenblatt: Milwaukee in Sculpture


	Adolph Rosenblatt: Milwaukee in Sculpture October 3, 1996-January 12, 1997 In Milwaukee in Sculpture, Adolph Rosenblatt manipulates mass, volume, and color to draw the viewer into the experience of his work. In Oriental Pharmacy Lunch Counter, he places his figures around a counter top; the interplay of the forms and the space which envelops them invites the viewer to sit down in an empty seat and strike up a conversation with one of the diners. In his wall-mounted newspaper pieces, the figures emerge from the pages of the paper in order to exert a physical and psychological pull on the viewer. In these works, Rosenblatt reminds us that the world of the media is an impersonal abstraction apart from the lives and actions of the actual people who make and read the news. Rosenblatt expertly renders his figures in terms of physiognomy, pose, expression, and gesture, the better to capture specific likenesses and recognizable locales. His true achievement, however, is not in representation. In his work, the colors are applied in daubs, Impressionist-style. The effect is a sense of shimmering light and flickering on the skin of the figures and on the surfaces of objects and buildings. This lightens their mass so that they appear ready to take flight. This is Rosenblatt's accomplishment: he has created a body of work which is simultaneously massive and ethereal, full of unyielding presence and yet about to vanish. The work embodies a shared, albeit ephemeral, humanity. Each figure seems to say, "We are only here for a short time. Let us enjoy each other's company while we can." Rosenblatt's interest in color has its roots in his training as an abstract painter at Yale in the 1950s. From Josef Albers, one of the twentieth century's most celebrated color theorists, he learned how to employ color to obtain particular visual effects in his abstract work. After he left Yale and moved to New York, Rosenblatt's aesthetic changed. He found that his abstract paintings were becoming thicker and thicker. Although his training at Yale had taught him to relinquish any sign of gesture in his work in favor of an impersonal tone, he wanted to create art with substance and presence. His work became figurative. He began to make bronze sculpture from the lost wax technique, which, unfortunately, was too expensive. Then he began to paint the wax itself. Using this process, he created street scenes with pedestrians, cars, shops, and subway entrances. In 1965, Rosenblatt embarked upon an art study trip in Europe. In the presence of paintings by the Italian master Tintoretto, he felt "humbled" and "embarrassed," as he later recalled. He came back to New York and turned to his early pre-Yale influences: the scintillating brushstrokes of the Impressionists and the composition and sculptural mass of the figures in Edward Hopper's paintings. These sources still inform his work. Indeed, Oriental Pharmacy Lunch Counter can be viewed as an impressionistic interpretation of Hopper's Nighthawks, in which the flickering play of paint across the ceramic surface of the work reinforces the sense of animation created by the careful grouping of the figures. In addition, the convivial style and casual subject matter reflect Rosenblatt's experience of the relatively less hurried pace of Milwaukee, where he moved in 1966. Adolph Rosenblatt's works serve as metaphors for the moments we are alive and solid, offset by the temporal nature of our existence. All we can do, all we should do, they says, is live the moment plainly, openly, in communion with our companions at the familiar corner spot in the diner. James Scarborough Curator © 1996 Marquette University

Adolph Rosenblatt: Milwaukee in Sculpture
October 3, 1996-January 12, 1997

In Milwaukee in Sculpture, Adolph Rosenblatt manipulates mass, volume, and color to draw the viewer into the experience of his work. In Oriental Pharmacy Lunch Counter, he places his figures around a counter top; the interplay of the forms and the space which envelops them invites the viewer to sit down in an empty seat and strike up a conversation with one of the diners. In his wall-mounted newspaper pieces, the figures emerge from the pages of the paper in order to exert a physical and psychological pull on the viewer. In these works, Rosenblatt reminds us that the world of the media is an impersonal abstraction apart from the lives and actions of the actual people who make and read the news.

Rosenblatt expertly renders his figures in terms of physiognomy, pose, expression, and gesture, the better to capture specific likenesses and recognizable locales. His true achievement, however, is not in representation. In his work, the colors are applied in daubs, Impressionist-style. The effect is a sense of shimmering light and flickering on the skin of the figures and on the surfaces of objects and buildings. This lightens their mass so that they appear ready to take flight. This is Rosenblatt's accomplishment: he has created a body of work which is simultaneously massive and ethereal, full of unyielding presence and yet about to vanish. The work embodies a shared, albeit ephemeral, humanity. Each figure seems to say, "We are only here for a short time. Let us enjoy each other's company while we can."

Rosenblatt's interest in color has its roots in his training as an abstract painter at Yale in the 1950s. From Josef Albers, one of the twentieth century's most celebrated color theorists, he learned how to employ color to obtain particular visual effects in his abstract work.

After he left Yale and moved to New York, Rosenblatt's aesthetic changed. He found that his abstract paintings were becoming thicker and thicker. Although his training at Yale had taught him to relinquish any sign of gesture in his work in favor of an impersonal tone, he wanted to create art with substance and presence. His work became figurative. He began to make bronze sculpture from the lost wax technique, which, unfortunately, was too expensive. Then he began to paint the wax itself. Using this process, he created street scenes with pedestrians, cars, shops, and subway entrances.

In 1965, Rosenblatt embarked upon an art study trip in Europe. In the presence of paintings by the Italian master Tintoretto, he felt "humbled" and "embarrassed," as he later recalled. He came back to New York and turned to his early pre-Yale influences: the scintillating brushstrokes of the Impressionists and the composition and sculptural mass of the figures in Edward Hopper's paintings. These sources still inform his work. Indeed, Oriental Pharmacy Lunch Counter can be viewed as an impressionistic interpretation of Hopper's Nighthawks, in which the flickering play of paint across the ceramic surface of the work reinforces the sense of animation created by the careful grouping of the figures. In addition, the convivial style and casual subject matter reflect Rosenblatt's experience of the relatively less hurried pace of Milwaukee, where he moved in 1966.

Adolph Rosenblatt's works serve as metaphors for the moments we are alive and solid, offset by the temporal nature of our existence. All we can do, all we should do, they says, is live the moment plainly, openly, in communion with our companions at the familiar corner spot in the diner.

James Scarborough
Curator