
Not counting pedestals, these pieces appear smaller than many in his previous shows, but their polish, integrity and resolution are striking. RAVELLINGTON, above, is a lyrical assemblage of lines, circles and wedges that visually hark to Matisse and the spirit masks of Mali, but despite such multicultural influences the result is a lyrical unity, a fluid harmonic riff flash-frozen in steel.

DOGON DIRGE melds African abstraction with the contrapuntal elasticity of the jazz funereal, its timeless torsion of joy and sorrow. BAMANA BOURRE is visually more angular, reflecting a more percussive sense of composition, but the title is a lyrical Payton blender concoction: ”Bamana” is a tribe in Mali, while “Bourre” is either a French provincial dance or a Cajun card game. Yet the result is pure Payton and in this show the visual jazz musician gives us a virtuoso performance. Meanwhile at the McKenna Museum at 2003 Carondelet St., Bruce Keyes' SPIRIT OF NEW ORLEANS exhibition of black and white photographs provides a panoramic visual survey of this city’s famously

SECOND LINE: New Sculpture by Martin Payton
Through July 14
Heriard-Cimino Gallery, 440 Julia St. 525-7300; www.heriard-cimino.com
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