A new exhibition at Hauser & Wirth in Chelsea explores the artistic development of Susan Rothenberg, showcasing how the acclaimed painter transformed repetitive subject matter into a dynamic and seductive visual language. 'The Weather' presents works spanning from her early 1970s horse paintings to her final pieces created in 2018, demonstrating her continuous growth as an artist who valued evolution over raw talent.
Rothenberg's philosophy on artistic development was clear when she told Grace Glueck in a 1984 New York Times profile that "Growth is more important to me than talent." At the time, the 39-year-old artist was attempting to evolve beyond her signature horse paintings with their worked surfaces and contoured forms. The current exhibition not only includes some of these iconic equine works but also presents a comprehensive range of pieces that confirm her progression and showcase her ability to enliven ordinary subjects through repeated forms and gestures.
The exhibition's front gallery strategically displays Rothenberg's early horse paintings in pairs, emphasizing her exceptional skill with color and light manipulation. Works like the earth-toned "Mary I" and "Mary II" (both 1974) present profile views of human bodies positioned on all fours, mimicking horse postures. Each painting represents an accumulation of individual brushstrokes rather than a synthesis of gestures, with every mark clearly stating its place within the larger composition.
This approach was particularly radical in 1974, when the art world was dominated by abstraction, conceptualism, and minimalist object-oriented materiality, making figuration seem outdated. Rothenberg positioned her figures within hazes of impastoed marks, aligning them more closely with formal abstraction than traditional figurative art. Outlines were suggested only through subtle shifts in tones and light, creating a unique visual language that challenged contemporary artistic trends.
The exhibition's second gallery features masterworks including "Foxes on a Hill" (1972), "Blue Frontal" (1978), "Our Lord" (1979), and "Red Head" (1980-81), which reveal Rothenberg's mastery of her distinctive approach. Like feminist artists such as Harmony Hammond, Carolee Schneemann, and Mary Ann Unger, Rothenberg employed methods of doubling, encasing, and gathering her subjects, which often included heads, horses, and full human bodies.
In "Foxes on a Hill," she twins the titular animals while mirroring the pillowy clouds in the sky above. "Blue Frontal" shows her iconic horse enclosed within pony legs, compelling viewers to see the central figure in relationship to surrounding elements. This relationality became key to her work, with subjects defined through their repeated associations with one another, creating complex visual dialogues within single compositions.
The final room of the exhibition demonstrates the full impact of Rothenberg's continuous growth, even in her final years. Works including "Las Blancas" (1996-97), "All Night Long" (2000-01), "Lift Off" (2006), and "Untitled (Band and Hands Green)" (2018) tenderly portray bodies in vulnerable states, often appearing nude or contorted as if uncomfortable in their spaces. These powerful paintings from her last 25 years exude particular anguish while displaying remarkable agility in mark-making.
"Untitled," with its bird's-eye view of a head cradled in two hands, echoes the overhead perspective of the bound cranium in "Red Head." However, the later work communicates emotional transformation more subtly through the gradual evolution of green tones from light verdant to dark evergreen, with gray peeking through the bone-white head. This demonstrates how Rothenberg's technique became increasingly sophisticated over time.
The exhibition reveals how Rothenberg adapted additive methodologies from contemporary practices like iteration, assemblage, and wrapping, transforming them into her own seductive painterly language. In an art world that prioritized obvious novelty both in the early 1970s when she emerged and today, her subtle persistence was rarely rewarded immediately, making this retrospective particularly significant.
Rothenberg proved herself to be more than just a skilled painter; she was an artist who continuously sharpened her abilities through repetition to better articulate sentiments that were simultaneously everyday and exquisite. Her work demonstrates how dedication to craft and persistent exploration of familiar subjects can yield profound artistic results.
"Susan Rothenberg: The Weather" continues at Hauser & Wirth located at 542 West 22nd Street in Chelsea, Manhattan, through October 18. The exhibition was organized by the gallery and provides visitors with a comprehensive view of an artist whose commitment to growth over talent created a lasting impact on contemporary figurative painting.
