John Sonsini + David Pagel: Broad Reminders is a richly considered collaboration between artist John Sonsini and critic David Pagel, offering a nuanced portrait of Sonsini’s empathetic figurative painting. Known for his warm, direct depictions of friends, workers, and everyday people—often rendered with an immediacy that honors their presence—Sonsini’s work is placed in dialogue with Pagel’s incisive essays that explore questions of intimacy, labor, and representation in contemporary art. The volume pairs vivid reproductions with thoughtful critique, revealing how these “broad reminders” of individual lives resonate with broader cultural and social currents. Broad Reminders is an engaging and essential work for admirers of realist painting and anyone moved by art that foregrounds connection, dignity, and humanity.
John Sonsini + David Pagel: Broad Reminders is a richly considered collaboration between artist John Sonsini and critic David Pagel, offering a nuanced portrait of Sonsini’s empathetic figurative painting. Known for his warm, direct depictions of friends, workers, and everyday people—often rendered with an immediacy that honors their presence—Sonsini’s work is placed in dialogue with Pagel’s incisive essays that explore questions of intimacy, labor, and representation in contemporary art. The volume pairs vivid reproductions with thoughtful critique, revealing how these “broad reminders” of individual lives resonate with broader cultural and social currents. Broad Reminders is an engaging and essential work for admirers of realist painting and anyone moved by art that foregrounds connection, dignity, and humanity.
