Betsy Kendall at B. Sakata Garo Gallery



Betsy Kendall is an American painter who graduated from Mills College with her BA and MA in painting from San Francisco University. Betsy Kendall show at the B. Sakata Garo Gallery consisted of pieces of watercolor, gouache and some with collage. This is the set up of her show from the back of the gallery. This picture is taken from the back of the gallery.



From the left of the entrance, there is a hallway under the staircase and second floor that exhibits more of her work and loops to the back of the gallery leading the viewer back to the entrance. The gallery is well lit and the pieces have enough space apart for the viewer to experience each piece on its own. 



“Jazzy Odalisque” made with collage elements with gouache and mounted on panel. The work from this exhibition including this piece seems to be influenced by Neo-expressionism. Neo-expressionism emerged from the late 1970’s, it returned to expressive qualities of Expressionism The expressionistic brushstrokes in the highlights and strong contour lines on the figure suggest influence from Neo-expressionism.



“Collage Dogs with Eugene” collage and gouache mounted on panel. The recognizable figure and emphasis on the importance of the subject is also an important element of Neo-expressionism. Kendall puts emphasis on the importance of the figure by making it the largest by scale, centralizing the figure and varying the brushstrokes within it very different from the other forms within the painting.





 “Orna and Amber” made with collage elements, gouache and mounted on panel. Other Neo-expressionistic elements seen within her paintings are the exaggerated colors within the figures she paints. Especially in this painting, her use of layering different pinks, reds, oranges and yellows warm-tones gives the figure life. This is also accomplished with her wide range of brushstrokes to build her body. An interesting element of her paintings is her use of lines and geometric shapes to make space. She also accomplishes this with collaging, as in this painting it seems to become a window of space and in other cases it blends in with the painting. She also has elements of painting such as the white triangle on the lower right, that mimics the collaged element.

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