Henry Taylor at the Line Hotel

Artist Henry Taylor is often quoted as saying that painting is like "having a carton of milk in the fridge. It's just going to happen." He may have started saying that before he began using milk cartons in his work, painting them black and affixing them to poles or panels. The cartons themselves, sometimes cut up or open, are somewhat grimy. The black paint makes them look like litter caught in an oil spill. So it's gratifying to see one of Taylor's black milk carton sculptures hanging behind the reception desk at the Line Hotel on Wilshire. The work interrupts the veneer of the hotel lobby, a self-consciously modern space with plush blue banquettes and marble countertops.