Wilshire Center

Ron Linden shows very tight, taut paintings where carefully drafted chairs, tables and beds float in veiled atmospheres along with rulers, triangles and discs, the tools of empiricism. We sense a dialogue between art and science, logic and intuition, a sort of Faustian take on the the idea of the artist plotting and planning to know all and control all, only to find lurking entropy.

Current works look like Linden softened his stance, giving into the unpredictability and mystery of things. There is a hint of figuration and illusionistic space suggested in this new, interesting work. In the acrylic, collage and wood piece “Obelos,” stacks of books teeter on a disc; in “La Terreur,” a bed, one of Linden’s favorite personal symbols, is transformed into a receding bulbous mass that could be almost anything including strange Oriental calligraphy. The most surprising piece is “Genoa,” where Linden is untypically narrative describing a cluttered, barely decipherable crowd scene where military figures huddle against some looming crisis. (Ovsey Gallery, 126 N. La Brea Ave. to Dec. 24.)