KATHERINE BERNHARDT
The New Yorker

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The New Yorker

By Martha Schwendener

KATHERINE BERNHARDT
A gutsy batch of neo-primitivist paintings inspired by Afro-Caribbean, African-American, and African culture. Slashing brushstrokes and dripping, vivid color are used to depict images of women that are described as self-portraits—tropical doppelgängers, perhaps—set against dark, murky backgrounds. A few males, like the “Old Style Dude with Top Hat” intercede. Mostly, though, Bernhardt explores the new byways of feminism (or post-feminism), taking into account race, class, and fashion. Her sloppy, aggressive aesthetic can be hit or miss, but her m.o. is consistent, following in the footsteps of Kathe Burkhardt and Marlene Dumas and, to a lesser degree, paralleling the wunderkind Dana Schutz. Through Oct. 16. (Canada, 55 Chrystie St. 212-925-4631.)