Some artworks – Hank Willis Thomas’ screen prints that reveal a picture when lit by a camera flash or James Turrell’s pitch-black room in which an abstract image can only gradually be made out – posit seeing as a subject in itself. The same is true for Becky Suss’s nighttime paintings at Jack Shainman Gallery, a series of understated canvases in dark tones that picture domestic scenes barely lit by a window or the glowing blue paint of floral wallpaper or a bedspread. Though the low light initially acts as a barrier, the eye adjusts and allows viewers to enjoy a carefully curated collection of decorative objects lit by the glow of a snowy landscape seen through windows, numerous nature-derived patterns on the furnishings, and references to artworks by Henri Matisse, Albert Pinkham Ryder and others. Evocative references and selective use of luminous blue paint convey a fairy tale atmosphere of stillness, possibility and appreciation. (On view in Chelsea through Oct 31st.)
