Principal Juror – Jonathan P. Binstock, Curator of Contemporary Art Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC

Juror’s Comments - The Mid-Atlantic region has a long, rich history of being home to a vital art scene, and today that scene encompasses artists working in all sorts of media, from the low-tech and traditional to the high-tech and cutting edge. This fact notwithstanding, it is especially gratifying to take stock of artistic activity in a medium as traditional and entrenched as painting. When serious and accomplished, painting offers the potential for an aesthetic and intellectual experience that is not available from work in other media. This is not only due to the medium itself, which has its distinctive characteristics, but also to its venerable history––the sheer weight, persistence and strength of the idea of painting.

The concept of painting, rather than painting per se, is fodder for at least a few artists in this volume. I think of Astrid Bowlby, who scatters shaped drawings throughout an exhibition space, and Michelle Oosterbaan, who sometimes makes site-specific wall works that are as much about architecture as they are the tradition of painting. Technically speaking, one might argue whether works like these should be included in a book dedicated to painting. And what’s to be said of those artists who contributed drawings, such as Rob Matthews, or those who work in another medium that is distinctly not paint, such as Emily Brown and Fiona Ross who prefer ink? What about a painting incorporating a photograph, or, dare I say, just a photograph, one that speaks the language of painting? Do processes like these have a role to play in the world of painting? Obviously yes, in the case of drawing, but also, I would say, in the case of virtually all other media. This is true for conceptual as well as concrete reasons. The fact is, painting’s ability to accommodate, absorb, repel and be influenced or altered by other media not only enables but also ensures its continued vitality.

Painting is here to stay because it is not the domain of painters or paint alone. I would argue that painting has a spirit, a heart, a feeling or sensibility, but no real or measurable beginning or end. It is, as is made clear by the artists in this volume, territory to conquer, to rebel against, or with which to flirt. It is an idea whose existence is founded in struggle. Even in a focused sampling such as this, it is difficult to lay hold of what we mean by painting. This is as much the case for artists working in the Mid-Atlantic as it is for those working on the West Coast, in Europe, or some other place where the tradition of painting is alive and well.