WARDELL MILAN *You Belong Here,* 2023 charcoal, graphite, acrylic, color pencil, pastel, oil pastel & cut-and-paste paper © Wardell Milan, courtesy Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco

Written by Max Wiener

At first glance, Wardell Milan’s work can feel quite dense. A lot is happening on the canvas, and your eyes will want to focus on all that is available, not just one singular focal point. This is not a takeaway; however, it is mastery. At San Francisco’s Fraenkel Gallery, Milan’s new series Modern Utopia draws on recurring themes and the modern zeitgeist to simultaneously tell myriad stories. Photography grounds this series, as Milan uses cut-and-paste images from news and print media and splices them into his work. By doing this, the escapist aspect of art becomes less reachable, and the woes of our current world are brought into the space with us. As we are forced to reckon with our society, Milan allows us to do so in a powerful, effective way. Modern Utopia opened on March 21st and is scheduled to close on May 24th.

WARDELL MILAN *Bombs in applesauce., 2023* charcoal, graphite, acrylic, etching, color pencil, pastel, oil pastel & cut-and-paste paper © Wardell Milan, courtesy Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco

Milan’s work has long been grounded in photography, and by bringing photojournalism to Modern Utopia, he brings a very heavy theme of reality.However, this only adds to the true magnitude of the series, and by looking at each work, we understand more about our society and ourselves. Many of the large-scale works featured have some of the more moving images in them, such as Bombs in applesauce and The Cruel Mediterranean Sea. The agony of human existence, especially among those less fortunate, is put on full display thanks to Milan. His colors evoke melancholic emotionality, using deep hues of blue and cutting reds to strike us with an unavoidable sadness. Their eyes peer into ours and lock into our souls, allowing their voices to be heard far beyond the boundaries of the canvas. Their presence follows us as we work our way through the gallery and the other pieces.

WARDELL MILAN *Lovers. Outside the world is on fire.*, 2023 charcoal, graphite, acrylic, color pencil, pastel, oil pastel, yupo, cut-and-paste paper & woodblock print on hand-dyed paper © Wardell Milan, courtesy Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco

Lovers, Outside the World, is on Fire is one of the more profound pieces exhibited in the series, providing a grounding metaphor for the series. The piece depicts a couple making love while the world around them crumbles. It is a haunting image with a menacingly beautiful aura. Their world seems grand, with bright pinks and reds camouflaging them from the horrors of the outside world. The voices in some of the aforementioned works would not permeate through their walls, for they can only focus on themselves and their own desires. Let us think of us when we look at a work like this and how we can get caught up in our own lives to the point where the reality of our world becomes clouded. There is strife in this world far worse than any of us can imagine, and instead of staying inside fearing the truth, let’s go out into the world and make a real difference.

Modern Utopia is a masterwork if it can make us think this.