Downtown

Harmonic Arrangements: Jerald Brainin makes rather pedantic minimalist paintings locked in rigid formulas that don’t--to all appearances--rely on theory, painterly handling or any particular sort of allusiveness to give them resonance. The basic format is a one- or two-color field with a duet, trio or quartet of vertical or horizontal bars firmly mapping a swath of space. In some, the bars read as inset areas, in others outer edges are emphasized. Despite variation of finish and color, it is hard to see these works as more than dutiful arrangements of color harmonies, choked by geometrical propriety.

New York photographer Regina Deluise’s small group of platinum and palladium prints look backward with a sigh to other eras, other styles. Despite ample evidence of technical skill, the artist clothes herself in borrowed styles and a dated notion of “arty” poses. The back of a nude reclining in a bed of ivy brings back memories of Weston. An apprehensive-looking, partially nude young woman with arms akimbo seems overtly stage-directed as she gazes fixedly away from the camera, in what might be a misfired homage to Imogen Cunningham. A fellow in his briefs clutches his knees in a simulacrum of moodiness a la George Platt Lynes. Apparently innocent of irony, these images don’t come across as plausible contemporary work. (Koslow Gallery, 2507 West 7th St., to March 3.)