In his recent paintings, Glenn Jampol succeeds at creating a visual equivalent for both the prosaic and the ineffable experiences of life. He does so by dint of the power of his imagery. Each painting presents a kind of window onto the pictorial universe of form and color. Peering through this window makes demands, not only on the artist, but also on one’s own imagination. Jampol casts the viewer in the role of active participant by setting a high premium on subjectivity.

The pressures, stresses, and violations of contemporary urban life are evoked by the tightly packed composition of Manuel Antonio, 1988. With their precisely contoured edges and swelling surfaces, the forms tumble and jostle each other. In Felony, 1989, vertical shapes shown from a bird’s-eye perspective take on the enormity of skyscrapers. Spheres with slits incised in their surfaces loom as reminders of a world beyond rational order, as represented by the building forms.

In Biograph, 1988, a varied assortment of rounded forms, each with slits and openings of eccentric configurations, invites an array of narrative associations. The dynamic, on-the-diagonal disposition of the composition evokes feelings of attack and pursuit. The three blue, green, and red forms in the background seem the aggressors, as they metamorphose from architectonic fragments into military emblems. The swollen, extended central shape, with its references to vases and to the female torso, appears to be the prize.

In Her Idea, 1989, there is a glimpse of yet another kind of war or combat. The stark contrast of organic and geometric forms calls to mind the resolution of conflicts between man and nature.

—Ronny Cohen