By Mark Jenkins
Where Woodward’s drawings of Europe were made over the course of decades, Foon Sham’s “Twist of Lime” flows entirely from a two-month residency in 2018 in the south of France. The Macau-bred Virginia artist was inspired by the region’s colors and culture, and its wood, to make the sculptures now at Gallery Neptune & Brown. He extrapolated the citrus slice in a glass of mineral water into a chimney-like construction of wooden wedges that curve into a wave. The piece’s exterior is painted a limey green, but the material’s natural hue is visible at its core.
Sham was taken with the region’s colorful shutters, which he sketched as well as emulated in painted wood. Several of these pastels hang with a few landscapes and proposal drawings for the sort of towering sculptures the artist has erected around town.
The 3-D works in this show are the opposite of monumental, so they could be shipped from France with relative ease. Many of them are wall pieces, often with crossbars that skewer the surrounding curves. The bar through “Eye Exam” is even movable. That’s one of many playful touches in a show whose title also refers to Sham’s decision to tweak his own established style.
Foon Sham: Twist of Lime Through April 20 at Gallery Neptune & Brown, 1530 14th St. NW.