Douglas Witmer, Joseph's Coat, 2009, Installation View (from Doug's website)For most abstract painters, it is rare to have an opportunity to work within a loaded context, one that rather than just a showcase, offers a rich sounding board for the work. When such an opportunity arises, it can be a valuable chance to expand beyond our own conventions and those of the requisite white cube, to tap into an alchemical process in which the resonance of the work merges with the resonance of the setting to create a third entity that is greater than the sum of its parts. This is certainly true of Douglas Witmer's new installation called Joseph's Coat in the Philadelphia Cathedral (through February).
