Five artists with very different approaches to the process and concept of drawing are presented in the group show "Drawing," at the Allston Skirt Gallery from March 3 - April 29, 2000. The five share an elegant, understated use of line and a willingness to push the dictionary definition of this art form in unexpected directions, but diverge in the variety of ways they employ materials and respond to subject matter.

Drawing has been defined as "the projection of an image or a series of points by the forming of lines on a surface; the art or technique of representing an object or outlining a figure, plan or sketch by means of lines, or; something that is drawn." These five artists examine relationships between drawing and language, drawing and culture, drawing and painting, drawing and abstraction, and drawing and commercial methods of representation, among many, many other things.

Jill Baroff forms fine lines on paper using not only graphite but also the paper itself, methodically folding sheer Japanese gampi paper to delineate areas and to create shadings of color upon which she makes personal marks. Baroff's years studying paper making in Japan are evident in her spare aesthetic and her philosophical use of iconography.

Meryl Blinder also uses untraditional methods to "draw" on paper, using rubber stamps instead of, or together with, traditional graphite on paper to explore how marks cluster to reveal form. Whereas Baroff's work is abstract, Blinder makes portraits "drawn" from life, observing and sketching animals at the zoo. Blinder values the experience of drawing from life in direct confrontation with her subjects, and appreciates the irony of using commercially manufactured stamps in drawing, which is a particularly personal and intimate process.

Heather Hobler-Keene uses drawing to sort through the barrage of media-influenced reproductions that assault our senses and values, and compete for our attention. Using an idiosyncratic line and tiny scale, Hobler-Keene draws with paint on board, making her own abstracted versions of found images, reducing them, and bringing them together in a new context in order to reprocess them.

Bronlyn Jones makes drawings that address the process of drawing -- each mark, line or shape suggests the next, and each drawing in turn suggests another. Her affinity for poetry -- for how we express the unsayable -- is evident in her work. Each delicate, purposeful drawing balances Jones' close attention to the particular challenge she is addressing with her suspension of consciousness, as she lets the work dictate its resolution.

Stefana McClure also has a strong affinity for language, and for the printed word in many forms. She uses a carbon paper-like material to impress copies of words onto sheets of paper, always remaining faithful to the original presentation -- from the justified margins and double columns of the printed dictionary to the low, centered appearance of movie subtitles.

* * * ALLSTON SKIRT GALLERY is located at 119 Braintree Street in Allston, near Able Rug and the Sports Depot. Please enter at 129 Braintree, and come up to the second floor. We are open Wednesday through Saturday, from noon - 5 p.m., and by appointment. For more information, please call Randi Hopkins or Beth Kantrowitz at 617-254-7027.

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