Grace Glueck
"Rosenberg + Kaufman Fine Art"
"Claudia Carr Gallery"
The New York Times
February 5,1999

Claire Seidl's paintings and works on paper seem torn between a lyrical landscape impulse and a rigorous ad herence to the gestural markings and other painterly devices of Abstract Expressionism. Not that the dialogue between these forces is off-putting; on the contrary, it often gives the work an interesting tension.

For instance, the small painting "Habitat", at Rosenberg + Kaufman, has the feel of a sparkling waterfall with its intriguing play of deep and shallow space, its shimmering lights and muffled shadows. But the landscape image trying to break through is firmly submerged by exuberant gestural impulses.

The same is true of another fine painting in the show, "No Sign of You", with the deep blue-greens and browns of a forest glade touched by sunlight. Yet the language is abstract, intensifying its painterly energy.

Color seems lighter and livelier in Ms. Seidl's works on paper at the Claudia Carr Gallery, which adhere to the same gestural principles as her oils. And there is a more relaxed play of space that keys down the tension. If her devotion to Abstract Expressionism seems a little die-hard, Ms. Seidl can't be faulted for trendiness.


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