The problem with most so-called post-Modernist work is that it merely ends up stating the obvious, busily demythologizing spent dogma while remaining blind to its own hidden reifications. This is precisely the plight of Kenneth Shorr’s recent work—collectively titled “The Nostalgia of Meaning.” Here he seems to belatedly arrive at the by now commonly accepted notion that the artwork is a contingent text, the meaning of which is inherently deferred and incomplete, instead of using this perception as a starting point for a more penetrating self-critique.

Shorr explores the dialectic between the

Raymond Pettibon’s 296 unframed drawings and texts take the form of a gigantic mock-up of an illustrated novel. Pushpinned to the walls of two small rooms and stacked five high, the drawings fill up every available inch of the gallery. There are moments of thematic coherence, but for the most part, the organizational logic is elusive. J. Edgar Hoover gets his own corner, as does Joan Crawford, but images of Gumby, fishhooks, light bulbs, and eyeballs intermingle. No sooner do you get your bearings than the rug is pulled out from under.

Pettibon uses the cartoon style of image making for its