Philip Taaffe at Luhring Augustine Gallery

Philip Taaffe’s latest body of work serves up an almost overpowering optical experience, even seen in detail, as in this segment of a painting at Chelsea’s Luhring Augustine Gallery.  Inspired by natural history and Japanese paper-working technique that involves dipping folded paper in strong dyes, this mixed media artwork favors a grid format that suggests orderly structuring of knowledge even while unleashing wild coloring.  (On view through Dec 21st).

Philip Taaffe, detail from Interzonal Leaves, mixed media on canvas, 111 11/16 x 83 11/16 inches, 2018.