by Mike Smith
Daily Lobo
Jonathan Abrams is a veteran cardiologist at UNM's medical school, but he is also an art lover.
Abrams is a self-described art groupie with numerous ties to the art world, a collector with a sizeable collection and the organizer and guest curator of "Painting - Alive and Well!" - an exhibit of eight artists that is on display at the UNM Art Museum.
"It was kind of like a labor of love, but there wasn't much labor," Abrams said of gathering all the pieces together in one place. "It was very pleasurable."
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Abrams was the key figure in bringing together notable work from all eight of the exhibit's artists. He said although most of the artists are from New Mexico and prominent in scenes around the state, many of these works have never before been shown in Albuquerque. The pieces range from the abstract to the representational, from the black and bleak to the bright and colorful.
Esther Golden, manager of the shop located inside the art museum, said many of the museum's employees and patrons have been struck by the eclectic mix of the exhibit's pieces.
"One of the things I like about the show - even though I don't like everything in it - is the variety," Golden said.
Abrams said the exhibit's eight featured artists include the acclaimed Tucson artist Jim Waid, the world-famous Agnes Martin and the critically beloved Susan Rothenberg.
Abrams said Rothenberg's work is shown in prestigious galleries and museums around the country.
"Getting Susan's work in the show was like having a coup," Abrams said. "All of these works are wonderful, though. I think this show is very much about passion - my passion for the show, but mostly the artists' passion for their work. Some of these artists are impoverished, yet they have to paint. They are all committed to their work despite the many hardships their work has brought with it. These are folks who can't do anything else."
Abrams said the pieces in the exhibit are anything but boring. He said they represent a range of beautiful yet unconventional imagery in a way as conventional and time-honored as paint on canvas - a way that will allow people to embrace the abstract and the unusual more easily.
"Most people - many people - are not comfortable with modern art, with abstraction. So I think another motive of this show is to make the abstract accessible," he said.
Golden said some people think modern painting is falling apart and dying.
"Abrams disagrees, and this show is his response to that," she said. "It's quite a response, too."
