Jazz and Baseball

Wren Panzella’s turbulent arrangements explode from the surface of her work, a syncopation of arms, legs, bodies, instruments, and rhythmic jazz vibes dripping from the painted surface.  These are breathing portraits, bodies quietly spiraling or aggressively intertwining, oozing sex and jazz.  In the hands of a lesser artist, the work could become formulaic but Panzella has invented a painting form and style all her own which is charged with vibrant energy, becoming a tidal wave of musical expertise expressed visually.

 

Marijo Dougherty,
Director emerita,
University Art Museum,
State University of New York.