Rance Jones The L inge ring R evo lu tio n October 1 – November 7, 2020
on the cover: Gecko, 2019, watercolor on paper, 38 x 30 inches
A Forum Gallery Introduction
Rance Jones The Lingering Revolu ti on
October 1 – November 7, 2020
Th e Lin ge ring Revolu tion
I
remember very well the first time I heard the opera, Cavalleria Rusticana. I was about fifteen years old, growing up in Cuba. It was magnificent. The emotional content of the music and its lyrics was overwhelming. The passion and the fury took me to a place I have never visited before; I was all answering to the music, no other information, no other reasoning. The music grabbed me just by itself, in its innocent purity and clarity of communication. Rance Jones’ art a≠ects me in the same way. A work of art grabs us by its essential presence. All the information and explanations of how and why the artist arrived at the work is secondary. The emotional confrontation happens naturally whether it touches our soul through our eyes or if our eyes reject it, but whatever the reaction, it is a pure and essential visually provoked response. Although Rance Jones’ watercolors reach us immediately by their intrinsically perfect execution, the information, the anecdotes, the pleasure of the face to face encounter always come first. This is an innate, intrinsic part of his DNA. His works reflect so much admiration of his subjects, his appreciation of the world around him and the intent of true communication. The explanations, the perhaps unconscious resources used, these will come much later. For when first encountering Rance Jones’ watercolors, we are grabbed by their emotional beauty, as if they were arias from Cavalleria Rusticana. — Antonio Alvarez Conservator Emeritus, Alvarez Conservation, New York Born in Havana, Cuba, Antonio Alvarez moved to the United States by way of Spain in 1965. He is an artist and a highly respected paper conservator based in New York City who has been in practice since 1980.
A wo rl d apart , Cuba is a vibrant and visceral country on the edge of great change. The people who live here are survivors and dreamers in a land where nothing goes to waste and everything is celebrated. The harsh, dilapidated structures of Havana disperse into a lush and rolling countryside dotted with tiny farms and villages where horses and oxen still do the heavy work. Since Castro’s sweeping Revolution began in 1953, Cuba has struggled economically. For many Cubans, the standards ushered in by Communist ideology are like a persistent pit in the stomach, a dull malady that seems bent on censoring their determination and resolve to thrive. I have learned, however, not to underestimate the determination of any Cuban. Begun in 2018, this series of watercolor paintings explores the interlocking fibers that weave Cubans into their social, political and physical environment. Communism, it seems to me, impacts Cubans like the waves of an ocean. It lifts and carries some, while it smashes others onto the shore. In these paintings, I wanted to depict this range of attitudes and emotions through the expressions, body language and surroundings of these remarkable people.
— Rance Jones
Lift, 2019, watercolor on paper, 27 x 36 inches
‘
Honey Candy, 2020, watercolor on paper, 21 x 25 inches
Rance Jones’ figures are psychological portraits, the arias in an opera, not its incidental music.
— antonio alvarez
Watchful Eye, 2018, watercolor on paper, 21 x 25 inches
Anthem, 2018, watercolor on paper, 21 x 18 inches
Angel, 2020, watercolor on paper, 21 x 18 inches
. . . a silent homage to Graffiti Art, elevating it to a place of essential poetic presence.
— antonio alvarez
Shadowing, 2020, watercolor on paper, 27 x 36 inches
Meditation, 2019, watercolor on paper, 21 x 25 inches
Form and content are perfectly married. If Rance Jones had not been an artist, he would have been an anthropologist. He has painted as if his life depends on it.
— antonio alvarez
Iglesia de Castro, 2019, watercolor on paper, 38 x 30 inches
Fall Forward, 2020, watercolor on paper, 27 x 36 inches
Azucar Y Tabaco, 2020, watercolor on paper, 21 x 18 inches
The individual, the Persona is the real message.
— antonio alvarez
Rance Jones b orn: Lubbock, Texas, 1965 education : 1993 1988
MFA, School of Visual Arts, New York, NY BFA, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
solo exhibitions: 2020 The Lingering Revolution, Forum Gallery, New York, NY 2017 La Vida de una Montana, Worrell Gallery, Santa Fe, NM 2015 100% Irish, Gallery@1300, Dallas, TX Inheritance, Worrell Gallery, Santa Fe, NM 2013 Worrell Gallery, Santa Fe, NM Retrospective, Park Family Center for the Arts, Plano, TX Momentous, Gallery@1300, Dallas, TX 2012 Agridulce, Kerr Arts Cultural Center, Kerrville, TX 2011 Exploration & Observation, Park Family Center for the Arts, Plano, TX group exhibitions and awards: 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016
First Impressions: New Works and New Acquisitions, Forum Gallery, New York, NY International Watercolor Masters, Lilleshall, England Person to Person, Forum Gallery, New York, NY Fabriano in Acquarello, Fabriano, Italy 152nd International Exhibition, American Watercolor Society, New York, NY Figure/Portrait 2018, Richeson 75, Richeson School of Art and Gallery, Kimberly, WI, Best in Show Southwestern Watercolor Society, Dallas, TX, Presidents Award ARC Salon International, Port Reading, NJ, Finalist California Watercolor Association, San Francisco, CA American Artist Professional League, New York, NY, Finalist Latino Cultural Center, Dallas, TX California Watercolor Association, San Francisco, CA Irving Arts Center, Irving, TX, First Place Arc Salon International, Port Reading, NJ Wildlife Exhibition, Richeson 75, Richeson School of Art and Gallery, Kimberly, WI American Artists Professional League, New York, NY, Honorable Mention New England Watercolor Society, Boston, MA Arc Salon International, Port Reading, NJ, Finalist
2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010
The Hunting Art Prize, Houston, TX, Finalist Western Federation of Watercolor Societies, Denver, CO, Best of Show American Artist Professional League, New York, NY, Best of Show California Watercolor Association, San Francisco, CA Art of the Heartland, American Art Collector, Scottsdale, AZ, Editor’s Choice Award Southwestern Watercolor Society, Dallas, TX, Daler-Rowney Award The Hunting Art Prize, Houston, TX, Finalist Southwestern Watercolor Society, Dallas, TX, Jack Richeson Award SVA Chelsea Gallery, New York, NY ARC Salon International, Port Reading, NJ, Finalist Southwestern Watercolor Society, Dallas, TX, First Place Arte de Los Brazos, Possum Kingdom, TX, Featured Artist Watermedia Showcase, Blue Ash, OH, Honorable Mention The Hunting Art Prize, Houston, TX, Finalist Society of Watercolor Artist, Fort Worth, TX, Second Place Watermedia Showcase, Blue Ash, OH, Fourth Place National Watercolor Society, San Pedro, CA, Winsor-Newton Award Society of Watercolor Artist, Fort Worth, TX, Best of Show Kathryn Heard-Craig Exhibition, McKinney, TX, Mastery of Media Award Southwestern Watercolor Society, Dallas, TX, Noted Artist Award
publications and articles: Fine Art Connoisseur, Boca Raton, FL, November-December 2018 Voyage Dallas Magazine, Dallas, TX, August 2018 Western Art Collector, Scottsdale, AZ, August 2016 Techniques in Watercolor, Tsinghua University Press, China, 2015 Visual Storytelling, Watercolor Artist, Fort Collins, CO, June 2015 Destination, American Art Collector, Scottsdale, AZ, May 2015 Dallas Art Review, Dallas, TX, January 2015 Day to Day Life, Western Art Collector, Scottsdale, AZ, June 2014 Showcase, Watercolor Artist, Fort Collins, CO, February 2013 San Antonio to Santa Fe, Southwest Art, Golden, CO, April 2013 A Mixture of Media, Southwest Art, Golden, CO, April 2012 Showcase, Watercolor Artist, Fort Collins, CO, February 2012 Noteworthy, American Artist Watercolor, New York, NY, Fall 2011
Blue Bird, 2018, watercolor on paper, 21 x 25 inches
F ORUM GALLERY 475 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10022 (212) 355 – 4545 forumgallery.com
design by hans teensma / impressinc.com printed by ghp, west haven, ct
F ORUM GALLERY