East Bay Express
March 31 - April 6, 2010 (Page 19)

Art, like horticulture (despite Dorothy Parker's quip), is led by what people think as well as by chance; it's hybridized by luck and design. The flower photographs of Hagit Cohen, Chi Fang, Michele Hofherr, and Hiroko To are all informed by contemporary abstract painting -- just as painting has historically been influenced by photography. Cohen's photos of flower garlands floating in creeks may suggest Pre-Raphaelite paintings of the waterborne nymph Ophelia, but there's an ecological message beneath their somber poetry. Fang takes a more lyrical, abstract, painterly view, emphasizing atmosphere, color, pattern, and movement. Hoffherr uses a macro lens and extreme cropping to emphasize shape, texture, and form, while To, who also employs dark backgrounds, focuses more on the drama of plants as expressions of energy. Radical Botanical runs through April 3 at Slate Art and Design (4770 Telegraph Ave., Oakland). 510-652-4085 or www.SlateArtandDesign.com

- Anneli Rufus

Slate Gallery
4770 Telegraph Ave.
Oakland, CA 94609