Open the massive gold door of a beige townhouse on the Upper East Side, step into the cramped confines of what is humorously labeled as “one of the slowest elevators on the planet,” and make your way into the Rodder gallery, a single-room space adorned with dark wood. Here, you find yourself amid the captivating art of James Castle. Born deaf on a rural Idaho farm at the dawn of the 20th century, Castle lived isolated from the mainstream art world, yet he independently embraced some of the most revolutionary ideas of mid-century abstraction.
Castle’s creations involved combining scraps of paper, often collected for years, with soot bound by saliva, resulting in stunning works that celebrate the fluid movement of ink across a page or the pliability of cardboard. The exhibition Dimensions showcases 14 pieces, including grayscale drawings, colorful images, assemblages, and text works. Consider the medium description for “Untitled (shooting stars)” (undated): “color of unknown origin on found paper.” This small, uneven piece is marked with a delicate wash of blue and gray ink, reminiscent of where sea meets land, a striking concept from Idaho’s inland horizons.
The transcendent nature of Castle’s art is frequently discussed, and these works feel as if they transport viewers to a universe governed by different rules, inviting exploration. In “Untitled (Door)” (undated), depicted on what appears to be balloon-patterned wrapping paper, a pair of doors exists without a building, framed solely by the picture plane. Meanwhile, “Untitled (Diptych)” (undated) uses the same paper as the backdrop for a unique, yin yang-like composition featuring robed figures at varying distances behind a chain-link fence.
One standout piece is “Untitled (Time Magazine Book)” (1933–40), where Castle crafts a postcard-like creation complete with hand-drawn stamps, demonstrating the limitless reach of imagination. The exhibition, James Castle: Dimensions, is on display at the Rodder gallery (22 East 80th Street, Fifth Floor, Upper East Side, Manhattan) until February 14, as organized by the gallery.
