Meticulous and materially fearless hand-work is the common thread in a stunning duo solo exhibition celebrating Albert Shahinian Fine Art’s 26th year in the Hudson Valley. Featured are two New York artists: Polly M. Law, showing bricolage and collage assemblages, and hand-cast bronze vessels by William W. Underhill (1933-2022).

Law’s earlier work (paper dolls with deep personal issues) has broadened beyond the female figure to include creatures in the natural world. She uses humble materials and techniques— illustration board, acrylic paint, buttons, wire, beads, thread, feathers—to achieve elegant and sophisticated effects. She manipulates form and employs patterning, rich color and gesture to explore myths of deep time and current self. Her assemblages achieve a flat/3D effect, turning a frame into a doorway, each piece a portal through which to glimpse private dramas.

William Underhill was a sculptor, celebrated craftsman, and professor emeritus at Alfred University, in Upstate New York. Born in California, he received his Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of California, Berkeley. There, he studied under legendary ceramic artist Peter Voulkos, became close friends with sculptor Stephen De Staebler, worked with Buckminster Fuller, and studied with Charles Eames. Rising from the Bay Area art scene of the early 1960s, “he rose to prominence as a pioneer among artists who found sculptural invention in the obsolescence of foundry work” (Edward Lebow).

Show runs through May, 2024, at Albert Shahinian Fine Art, 22 East Market Street, Rhinebeck, shahinianfineart.com