In this large group of small sculptures, Elisa Lendvay masterfully tinkers with plaster, Sculpey, wire, bones, stones, markers, and a playing card found on the beach of Montauk.

I am addressing this letter to you in honor of the art criticism we wrote together in the 1980s, trading paper manuscripts back and forth with revisions long before the “convenience” of sending texts through the digital ether. I have been thinking about your recent writing on “provisional painting” and have seen the work of two sculptors whose current shows may present an alternative take on the provisional.