George Chemeche

Daven Madu

George Chemeche was born in 1934 and studied at the Avni Art School in Tel Aviv and the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. The style with which he is intimately associated, pattern painting, is non-minimalist, sensuous, romantic, rational and decorative. Its methods, thematic material and referents range across cultural and class lines. The style is two-dimensional, non-hierarchical, allover and acentric. Because most viewers respond with delight to patterning, it runs counter to the modernist taboo against a decorative quality in art. Though pattern painting's roots are in modern art, it contradicts some of its basic tenets as it attempts to assimilate aspects of Western and non-Western culture not previously accepted into the realm of high art. Though most people intuitively recognize patterning, it is difficult to define. The most serviceable definition is that pattern is the systematic repetition of a motif or motifs used to cover a surface uniformly. The spaces between motifs are either other motifs or are an integral part of the repeat. Whatever form the painting takes, its flat and pictorial space is at a minimum. What makes patterning in pattern painting different from patterning in the "functional" arts-weaving, mosaics and so on, and especially in the art of non-Western cultures-is partly the use of pigment on canvas, but also, and of greater importance, intention and context. The intention is to make a high-art statement within a contemporary context by referring to, and using what to many still remains within the world of non-art. Pattern painting, unlike abstractionism, has structure. It also has content as it refers to patterns in the real world. Usually, patterning intentionally acknowledges the decorative function of art, reconciling both the decorative and the meaningful. George's work hangs in the lobby of the Hotel Chelsea where many have admired it for years. Last year, we had the pleasure of hearing George read his poems of life and love in the Chelsea at the Bowery Poetry Club. Like many Chelsea residents, George was a long time member of McBurney Y until they moved to 14th St. At left, George's response to their move. Living in the Hotel Chelsea since 1972 has taught George a valuable lesson: never ask Women and dogs about their age.