Winter’s weight and what lies below

Flowers and snowflakes? Not exactly. Spaien has flattened the flowers, abstracting them into something closer to a wallpaper pattern than a garden. Even so, it’s striking to note that the pallid veils floating over portions of them cultivate an illusion of space and toy with our perception of what lies beneath. “In Winter #3’’ sports the gauzy white grid on either side, opening like a curtain to reveal the spinning blossoms, with more glimpsed just off stage.

A low bench invites the viewer to examine the paintings more closely. Most of the visual weight takes place beneath the airy wall painting, which gives the installation an unexpected gravity. It’s a bit wintry, but the show turns out to be more about art than it is about snow.

Circles of women

Lana Z Caplan has set up a nifty little viewing room for her installation of several videos delving into societal expectations about women at Gallery NAGA. Her main focus is on spectating, and the relationship between viewer and viewed.

The role of the spectator has been hot in art theory in recent years (Caplan’s previous show at NAGA, photos of public execution sites, touched on the topic). Bringing it to bear on women circles back to older feminist theory about how an artist objectifies his model. In this realm, it’s easy to tread into all-too familiar territory, and Caplan does that sometimes.

“Sanctimonia 1’’ and “Sanctimonia 2’’ positions a video of pop star Madonna gyrating onstage beside a video of men shouldering a statue of the Madonna and child - hardly a new comparison, even if you’re looking at the role of the audience (or worshipers) - in the iconography of both Madonnas.