Pinocchio Opens at the
Glovinsky Gallery
By Don Eron
Pinocchio, the marionette who undergoes a turbulent journey
in realizing his dream of becoming a real boy, has long been a subject of
fascination for artists, perhaps most notably the pop-artist Jim Dine. Denver
artist Janet Glovinsky joins their ranks with her exhibition “Pinocchio,” which
opens May 1 at the Glovinsky Gallery, one block off Santa Fe at 8th
and Inca. Those inclined to investigate First Fridays in the Santa Fe art
district will find “Pinocchio” to be a remarkable show well worth walking the extra
block to Inca.
“Pinocchio” represents a departure for Glovinsky. She has
often explored personal obsessions, expressed in explosions of vibrant color,
dense texture, symbolic language (Glovinsky is also an accomplished poet) and
recognizable images, presented through a series of conceptually conversant
paintings—“Life above the Line” (living an above-average life); “Crossing
Borders” (political liberation); “Lost” (mental illness). While the 12
paintings in “Pinocchio” retain the quality of narrative puzzles, they also represent
Glovinsky’s transformation as an abstract artist, as if in “cutting the
strings” to imagery and language her artistic exploration acts as correlative
to the marionette’s journey.
Indeed, cutting the strings that provide us with safety, but
that restrain us from striving after our dreams, is a theme that is everywhere
in this exhibition. “If You Don’t Have a Dream, How Do You Make a Dream Come
True?” features numerous layers of color and texture that overwhelm Pinocchio, evoking
his vulnerability but also his resolve. In another (as yet untitled) painting,
a tiny Pinocchio, in a kayak on the surface of a vast sea, unwittingly rows toward
turbulent waters. In another, Pinocchio rows out of the turbulent waters and,
intrepid, continues his exploration, as if accepting that turbulence is a
necessary component of his journey.
Not all the paintings in “Pinocchio” contain the image of
the marionette, but each expresses the anxiety and hope that cutting the
strings might inspire. “How I Wish Upon a Star,” presents a woman lying on a
deserted beach, crumpled and discouraged, who notices a single star looming in
the remote sky. In what may be the exhibition’s masterwork, also titled “How I
Wish Upon a Star,” a phalanx of reds and whites drip from the top of the canvas
to create a flat color field—in contrast to roughly textured browns, blues, and
blacks. This painting is entirely abstract, save for a conspicuous Star of
David. Here Glovinsky, who often draws upon Jewish themes in her painting and
poetry as vehicles for merging the personal with the political, seems to
express the inevitable—some journeys are smooth, others rough. In a time of
increasing global anti-Semitism, Glovinsky accepts that hers might be rough.
The last two paintings in “Pinocchio” are pure abstract presentations
of feeling, evoked entirely through color and texture. No symbolic language or
recognizable images guide the viewer toward a context, beyond the inspiring
context established through the other paintings. I couldn’t help but feel that
with these two abstract works the artist, cutting the strings of the familiar,
has culminated her identification with Pinocchio’s quest.
For anyone interested in the complexities of the human
spirit, this is work to savor—and that will enhance any collection.
For “Pinocchio” Janet Glovinsky will also show several
bronze sculptures that comment on the paintings. One wall of the Glovinsky
Gallery will be a dedicated “Wishing Wall”—visitors are encouraged to write their
dreams. “Pinocchio” will show first and third Fridays and by appointment. At
the May 1 opening, there will be free food and drink, with live music by David
Burchfield. Request: “How I Wish Upon a Star.”
Don Eron, who recently
retired from the CU-Boulder faculty, is a writer and activist.
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