23 Mar 2020

Ron Milewicz: Axis Mundi

Elizabeth Harris Gallery

Reviewed by Xico Greenwald

Ron Milewicz's exhibition of small, gauzy landscape paintings are striking for their originality, bringing a unique approach to a well-worn genre. Oil paint is gently scrubbed on, leaving the weave of the canvas showing through thin layers of color. Trees on rolling hills are precisely painted but nevertheless have a soft touch. Small, delicate strokes feel out forms of tree trunks and wavy branches while conveying a washed-out light that manages to be both unearthly and believable, even familiar. Sugar Maple (2019) looks sun-bleached. Woods are rendered with pale yellows, as though an overwhelming brightness filled the air.

According to the gallery press release, the title of the show, "Axis Mundi," refers to "a universal pillar which puts heaven, earth, and underworld into communication with each other." That may sound New Age-y, but these landscapes have the capacity to get even hardened New Yorkers seeing through Milewicz's inspired gaze.