JOAN WATTS: Zazen
May 31 - June 29, 2024
Joan Watts
These colors reach into you. Pierce the sternum, fill the solar plexus, root in the gut. Jewel-toned maroon, shadowed forest green, cool wet slate, warm turned earth, heart-of-iris purple, deepest navy sky: these rich and saturated colors anchor and ground the bottom halves of a series of square-format paintings. Rising from these fertile beds of redolent color blooms a collection of pale contrasting tones: petal yellow, sage green, fog, and topaz, palest aquamarine.
The series of paintings by Joan Watts, Zazen, included in this eponymous exhibition was featured in an exhibition in Wiesbaden, Germany at Galerie Ulrike Buschlinger in the late 1990’s and has never before been shown in the United States.
There are so many ways to approach the series: the pared down visual vocabulary; the square format; the minimal colors. The tonality of those colors and the intricate and painstaking layers of paint used to create the complex and yet simple surfaces. The soft white horizontal line created by grouping several of the individual paintings together. Each viewpoint reveals a facet of these works. But the viewer must go further, and ultimately inward, to join these facets together and see the series holistically.
While it is tempting to see horizons – with the paintings’ darker toned bottom halves rising to light colors above, the title of the series and familiarity with the work of Joan Watts (as well as the square format) suggest another direction altogether. By the late 90’s, Watts had been studying Buddhism for about a decade and by that time the practice had thoroughly shifted and influenced her artistic process. These pieces, as the title suggests, focus particularly on the primary, essential practice of Buddhism: zazen, or sitting meditation. So rather than landscapes, these pieces move the viewer from macrocosm to microcosm, from outward to inward, from distance to closeness.
With this perspective, the squareness accentuates a sense of balance – the feeling of solidity that might come from sitting still upon the earth. The darker tones and colors: body. The lighter colors: mind. Moving through the gallery, piece to piece, that initial impression of the colors rooting down into the gut makes sense. Moving between the darker and lighter halves we begin to intuit a common paradox of Buddhist theory and practice –the simultaneous coexistence of discipline and freedom, of being and nothingness, of solidity and intangibility, of structure and fluidity. Like other Buddhist art forms, Watt’s work exemplifies this dichotomy through a balancing of the qualities of precision and structure with a flowing and intuitive expression.
Now we can stand (or sit) with Watt’s paintings and experience them on their own ground. Root our feet. Take a breath. Aha! We can feel how that mysterious white line, balancing between dark and light, negotiating between dense and diaphanous, might just be breath, the joining of inside and outside. We can walk from piece to piece and feel how each individual painting shows the slightly different experience of Zazen. One day thoughts lead one way. Another day, memories arise. Yet another come emotions of sadness or joy. Another paradox. While the practice remains the same: sit, breathe – the experience is always a slightly different color.
In this way the small works on paper add one additional element to the whole. These tiny pieces feel like fragments, glimpses, bits of thought or imagery. They show glowing lines, fragments of larger layers and geometries. Taken in the context of the whole, of this experiential exhibition of Zazen – these little pieces appear like the bits of thought that can arise during meditation: the fragments of an idea or memory, the flicker of a color or feeling.
Take time here with Zazen. Breathe with each piece. Allow them to guide you.
-Michaela Kahn, PhD
Zazen 1, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Zazen 2, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Zazen 3, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Zazen 4, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Zazen 5, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Zazen 6, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Zazen 7, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Zazen 8, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Zazen 9, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Zazen 10, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Zazen 11, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Zazen 12, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Triptych, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches each
Three, 1995, oil on canvas, 24 x 24 inches each
Zazen 13, 1995, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Untitled, 1996, oil on canvas, 26 x 26 inches
Haiku #3, 1993, oil pastel on paper, frame: 8.5 x 10 inches
Haiku #4, 1993, oil pastel on paper, frame: 8.5 x 10 inches
Haiku #5, 1993, oil pastel on paper, frame: 8.5 x 10 inches
Haiku #7, 1993, oil pastel on paper, frame: 8.5 x 10 inches
Haiku #12, 1993, oil pastel on paper, frame: 8.5 x 10 inches
Haiku #15, 1993, oil pastel on paper, frame: 8.5 x 10 inches
Haiku #1, 1993, oil pastel on paper, frame: 8.5 x 10 inches
Zazen 1, 1995 oil on canvas 26 x 26 in.
JW173
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Zazen 2, 1995 oil on canvas 26 x 26 in.
JW174
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Zazen 3, 1995 oil on canvas 26 x 26 in.
JW175
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Zazen 4, 1995 oil on canvas 26 x 26 in.
JW176
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Zazen 5, 1995 oil on canvas 26 x 26 in.
JW177
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Zazen 6, 1995 oil on canvas 26 x 26 in.
JW178
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$3,600
Zazen 7, 1995 oil on canvas 26 x 26 in.
JW179
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$3,600
$3,600
Zazen 8, 1995 oil on canvas 26 x 26 in.
JW180
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Zazen 9, 1995 oil on canvas 26 x 26 in.
JW181
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$3,600
$3,600
Zazen 10, 1995 oil on canvas 26 x 26 in.
JW182
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$3,600
$3,600
$3,600
$3,600
Zazen 11, 1995 oil on canvas 26 x 26 in.
JW183
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$3,600
$3,600
Zazen 12, 1995 oil on canvas 26 x 26 in.
JW184
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$3,600
Triptych, 1995 oil on canvas
26 x 26 in. each
JW162
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Three, 1995 oil on canvas 24 x 24 in. each
JW172
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Zazen 13, 1995 oil on canvas
26 x 26 in.
JW185
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Untitled, 1996 oil on canvas 26 x 26 in.
JW186
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Haiku #3, 1993 oil pastel on paper
8.5 x 10 in. framed
JW188
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Haiku #4, 1993 oil pastel on paper
8.5 x 10 in. framed
JW189
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$3,600 each
Haiku #5, 1993 oil pastel on paper
8.5 x 10 in. framed
JW190
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$3,200 each
Haiku #7, 1993 oil pastel on paper
8.5 x 10 in. framed
JW191
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$1,200
$3,600
Haiku #12, 1993 oil pastel on paper
8.5 x 10 in. framed
JW194
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$1,200
$3,600
Haiku #15, 1993 oil pastel on paper
8.5 x 10 in. framed
JW195
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$1,200
$1,200
Haiku #1, 1993 oil pastel on paper
8.5 x 10 in. framed
JW187
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$1,200
$1,200
$1,200
Education:
1964-1966
1960-1963
1957-1959
University of Hawaii, M.F.A.
San Francisco Art Institute, B.F.A.
Briarcliff College, A.A.S.
Selected Solo Exhibitions:
2024, ‘18, ‘16, ‘14, ‘12, ‘10, ‘08, ‘00
2007, ‘05
1998
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1990
1989
1985
1984
1983
1980
1977
1975
1972
Charlotte Jackson Fine Art, Santa Fe, NM
Lemmons Contemporary, New York, NY
Whelan Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
Galerie Ulrike Buschlinger, Wiesbaden, Germany
Linda Durham Contemporary Art, Galisteo, NM
Santuario de Gaudalupe, Santa Fe, NM
Spirit Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
Peyton-Wright Galleries, Santa Fe, NM
Cortland Jessup Gallery, Provincetown, MA
Kauffman Gallery, Houston, TX
Soho 20 Gallery, New York, NY
Elaine Starkman Gallery, New York, NY
Blue Heron Gallery, Wellfleet, MA
Soho 20 Gallery, New York, NY
80 Washington Square East Galleries, New York, NY
Noho Gallery, New York, NY
Bethel Gallery, Bethel, CT
Katonah Gallery, Katonah, NY
Silvermine Guild, New Canaan, CT
1970, ‘69 Gallery III, Ossining, NY
1968
Selected Group Exhibitions:
2022, ‘21, ‘20, ‘19, ‘17, ‘15, ‘14
2013
2012, ‘09, ‘07
2008
2006
2004
Briarcliff College, Briarcliff Manor, NY
Charlotte Jackson Fine Art, Santa Fe, NM
Johannes Vogt Gallery, New York, NY
SITE Unseen, SITE Santa Fe, Santa Fe, NM
Fall 2008 Group Show, Lemmons Contemporary, New York, NY
Mergers and Acquisitions: Recent additions to the permanent collection, Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe, NM
Synthesis, Lemmons Contemporary, New York, NY
The Zen of Materiality, trio exhibit, Charlotte Jackson Fine Art, Santa Fe, NM
Together, Japan Art Forum, Kyoto, Japan
1999 New Mexico 2000, juried exhibition, Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe, NM
Landscape: A Glimpse, Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe, NM
1997 Invitational, Galerie Ulrike Buschlinger, Wiesbaden, Germany
1996
1995
1994
1992
House Guests, Linda Durham Contemporary Art, Galisteo, NM
Archeology of the Spirit, Gallery Brocken, Tokyo, Japan
The Landscape: New Mexico and Beyond, Karen Ruhlen Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
Mnemonic Conflux, trio exhibit, Cast Iron Gallery, New York, NY (catalogue)
Our Own Visions: Abiquiu After O’Keefe,1994 Invitational Exhibit, Roswell Museum and Art Center, Roswell, NM (catalogue)
Abiquiu After O’Keeffe, Galleria Arriba, Abiquiu, NM
Inaugural Exhibition, Sally Harvey Fine Arts, Aspen, CO
1991
1989
1988
1986
1985
1984
1983
1982
1981
A Sense of Place, Peyton-Wright Galleries, Santa Fe, NM (catalogue)
Selections ‘91, juried, College of Santa Fe, Santa Fe, NM
A Salute to Women, National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, DC
In Quiet Contemplation, Spirit Arts, Santa Fe, NM
The Recovery Show, Armory for the Arts, Santa Fe, NM
The Artist and the Spiritual Quest, The Open Center, New York, NY
Private Vision, Silvermine Guild, New Canaan, CT
Small Works, Elaine Starkman Gallery, New York, NY
Silvermine Collection ’84, Richardson-Vicks, Wilton, CT
Collector’s Choice, curated by Ethel Scull, Pleiades Gallery, New York, NY
Color Harmonious & Discordant, curated by Sylvia Sleigh, Marymount-Manhattan College, New York, NY
Member Artists, Noho Gallery, New York, NY
The Advocate Show, Hibbs Gallery, New York, NY
Annual Exhibition, juried, Provincetown Art Association, Provincetown, MA
1980 International Festival of Women Artists, Gallery 14, Copenhagen, Denmark
1978
1975
1972
1971
1970
1969
1968
1967
1965
Selected Collections:
Southern New England Invitational, Fairfield University, Fairfield, CT
Invitational Exhibition, Wooster Art Center, Wooster, CT
Juried Exhibition ’75, juried by Dore Aston and Richard Pousette-Dart, Rockland Center for the Arts, Rockland, NY
New England Exhibition, juried by Evan H. Turner, Silvermine Guild, New Canaan, CT
New England Exhibition, juried by Lawrence Alloway, Silvermine Guild, New Canaan, CT
Members Exhibition, Painting Award, WAS Gallery, Westchester Arts Society Gallery, Tarrytown, NY
New England Exhibition, juried by Gordon M. Smith, Silvermine Guild, New Canaan, CT
Faculty Exhibit, Briarcliff College, Briarcliff Manor, NY
Faculty Exhibit, State University of New York at New Paltz, New Paltz, NY
Members Exhibition, Gallery of the Hawaii Arts Council, Honolulu, HI
MFA Exhibition, East West Center, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI
Group Exhibit, Honolulu Printmakers, Honolulu, HI (traveling)
Artists of Hawaii 1965, juried by Donald J. Brewer, Honolulu Academy of Arts, Honolulu, HI\
Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, New York
Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe, New Mexico
The Harwood Foundation, Taos, New Mexico
Roswell Museum and Art Center, Roswell, New Mexico
Library and Research Center, National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, DC
SandRidge Energy, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Upaya Foundation, Santa Fe, New Mexico
Cravath, Swain & Moore, New York, New York
Hubert Wilke, Inc., New York, New York
Babkie International, Westport, Connecticut
Barnard College, New York, New York
Marilyn Rubin Associates, Briarclifff Manor, New York
Sandek Corporation, Stanford, Connecticut
Collins & Aikman Corporation, New York, New York
Bowes and Associates, Houston, Texas
Robert Redford, Santa Monica, California
