JOSH SMITH: ABSTRACTION, with a text by Sophie Aschauer

Holzwarth Publications, 2008, First edition, 280 pp., 11" X 131/2", Two softcover books and one staples booklet housed in a cardboard slipcase

Fine books in a very good slipcase

In his series, Abstraction, Smith creates archetypes from abstract paintings--airy compositions in lively colors. Although he takes his stylistic cue from the Abstract Expressionist school, which bestowed mythical status upon the artist, Smith's unusual color combinations and cartoon-like forms retain little of this weighty background. His appropriations from abstract painting are quite direct, and endow this artistic tradition with a refreshing lack of pretension. The first volume of this slipcased set features Smith's abstract paintings; the second features his palette paintings--palettes on which the artist has squeezed out his brushes, pursuing a completely straightforward aesthetic of simple forms. A text booklet contains an interview with the artist.