Scoping Out the 2013 Scope Art Fair

In 2011, my friend Laurie Caroll started FitzRoy Knox Gallery with her partner Julia FitzRoy. This year, FKG had a booth at New York's Scope art show, so I thought I'd stop by and have a look. When I arrived, I was welcomed by Jeff Chiplis' beautiful neon pieces set up against wooden crates, which reminded me of ships in the night, before I encountered a bejeweled headless horse with spikes protruding from its side, rotating slowly on a mechanical Lazy Susan. I knew I was in for a treat.

I wandered around spotting art of all types––from drawing to painting to elaborate cut-outs and other mixed media. (Some quite literally mixed: Shiro Masuyama at Golden Thread Gallery dipped household objects into concrete!) Each gallery displayed its vision with a focused, consistent selection. When I asked Carl Smith, the owner of CES Contemporary in Laguna Beach, how he chose pieces to represent, he said he based it on what he'd want in his home. His explained his partiality to complex, layered works with soft and elegant coloring, and I definitely understood what he meant when looking at the art after speaking with him.

I made my way through most of the show, and I saved my favorite for last. At FitzRoy Knox, Laurie's enthusiasm for the works on display was contagious! I ended up falling in love with the artist Wendy Wolf, whose aesthetic is delicate and refined but very eye-catching and strong in its message. A writer who bases her artwork on the movement of handwriting, she uses radiograph ink (known amongst architects as the most precise ink) and paper made from plastic to create repetitive but random and organic shapes. I could have stared at the pieces for hours, reading every movement as poetry. Wow! I left Scope feeling rejuvenated, having fed my mind with delicious art.