Brick By Brick, An Artist Gets His Big Break

By Karen Burke

L. B. Brown refers to the collection of 16 different artists on the left side of her Clinton Hill Art Gallery as "The Brick Wall' that adequately names this space of some 20 feet with a wealth of divergent sensibilities, modes, and subjects that have little more to do with one another than that they have been found, by the aforementioned Brown, to be emerging or promising talent that speaks of and to Brooklyn.

"I want to give collectors, even people who have never purchased a piece before in their lives. the opportunity to view original work by artists from our community," says the gallery owner. "I began as a collector, and I want to sponsor communication between those interested in purchasing beautiful works and the artists who are producing it."

The remaining space in the gallery is dedicated to the current show. On April 29, the Clinton Hill Art Gallery hosted the opening reception of "Views, inside out," a solo show by Louisiana-cum-Brooklyn artist L. Brooks Frederick. This solo show of Frederick's work was merited by the interest shown in his work while it was on the Brick Wall.

“This artist has been shown in the gallery since its opening in December2004, and his work has consistently brought inquiries and sales, so I decided it was time to give him his own show," reasoned Brown.

Frederick's paintings, oil on board or oil on canvas, as represented in the show, tell something of the outsider' s view of insider Brooklyn. Originally from Louisiana, Frederick stands inside of Fort Greene imagery while affording it an outside orientation, a sense of having come or having visited a space not fully one's own. DUMBO' s view of the bridge landscapes culled from local parks, a softened and sun smeared bank, are balanced by a collection of interiors and stills, as well as a portrait piece.

Trained as an observationist, Frederick's work slows perception and viewpoint down to meditative space; delicate neutral tones haze the edges of trees, lampposts, and streetscape, tracing and focusing the movement of light over form. The public space of a street comer at dusk and the private interior world of a still life featuring a Coors Light can or an orange, the surprises of color and the familiarity of shifted light are thus given anonymity and presence.

"I want to reveal the spiritual through the material and sensual things that surround us. To let the interior meaning come through," explained Fredericks as he passed below a pair of stills, light and dark but of similar composition. Each of the pieces plays a delicate balance between absence and presence.

Other than the single portrait piece, this is a view of Brooklyn with no one there, a Brooklyn of things growing. things built, things set down and left behind. Stillness and the slow internal working of things are evoked through the fading of a flower, the ripeness of fruit, or the shock of bright brought by in a bird. Picture frames hang empty, cups don't hold anything, and there are broad spaces of canvas that hold no figure.

While neutrality of color tones and stillness of perception emphasize something of that "outsider's" view, they also allow a deep sense of intimacy and presence. We are allowed to look at a snow swept comer through a dreamy perspective that is haunting and familiar, deeply humanized. The portrait piece, "Tuesday Morning,"' is a perfect example of Frederick's use of light, color and stillness. It shows a black man, alone al a dining room table. The room is large, still, and empty. The movement of the morning light coming in, on the left-hand side, contrasts with the staid weight of the seated man on the right, whose hands are loosely opened before him, in full gravity of prayer.

Frederick's show will run through June 10, and a number of t1he pieces have already been sold. Frederick will give an artist talk from 2 to 4 p.m., on Sunday, May 21. The Clinton Hill Art Gallery is located at 154A Vanderbilt Avenue, just south of Myrtle Avenue.