Jane Dickson: 99¢ Dreams
Brendan Burdzinski, The Brooklyn Rail
May 2022
An overwhelming desire for the past looms in the air; indeed, one reminder of this sentiment—and it’s a stunning one—is 99¢ Dreams, Jane Dickson’s current exhibition of new paintings at James Fuentes Gallery. The seventeen paintings on view were made in the last two years during lockdown; most are oil stick on linen or felt and three are acrylic. Neo-Impressionist layers of paint smudges resembling film grain call to mind the photographs referenced here, as these paintings are based off of shots the artist took after dark in the 1980s of theater marquis, flashing neon signs, dark alleys and bright storefronts that describe her personal history in Times Square. Dickson translates the still scenes into colorful and juicy paintings that seem to pull away from the gallery walls and at the same time sink into them. […]