Winston Wächter Seattle
Michael Schultheis Bouquets, Luminaries, Menageries: Stories Told in Calculus November 3 – December 23, 2016
Winston Wächter Fine Art Seattle is proud to announce Bouquets, Luminaries, Menageries: Stories told in Calculus, our sixth solo exhibition with painter Michael Schultheis. Please join us for our opening reception on Thursday, November 3, 6 – 8 pm. The artist will be in attendance. At Microsoft, Michael Schultheis used mathematics to create software, which is now part of our everyday life. Since leaving, Schultheis has channeled his passion for mathematics into visual, conceptual storytelling. Each painting is layer upon layer of formulas and their corresponding geometric shapes. For those able to read those formulas, canvases are transformed into three-dimensional space, and for others they are simply beautiful, intriguing abstractions. What makes Schultheis’ work relatable to any viewer is how he chooses to use these formulas and shapes. Human behavior, relationships, situational information is all translated mathematically. The speed at which we live our lives, character traits of individuals, our locations, are explained as velocity, eccentricity and radius. By sharing these stories via mathematics, Schultheis removes all judgment of behavior, and simply presents us with what is. This timeless and universal language becomes a way of connecting us all. His work can be found in the collections of the Tacoma Art Museum, Tacoma, WA; United States Embassy, Athens, Greece & Bern, Switzerland; and the Mathematical Association of America, Washington DC among many others. Exhibitions of his works have been held at the Howard Hughes Institute in Chevy Chase, MD and at the National Academies of Sciences in Washington, D.C.
Cover: Koans from Newton, 2016, acrylic on canvas, 48 x 60 inches Opposite: Bouquets for LeWitt, 2016, acrylic on canvas, 60 x 120 inches
206.652.5855
jessica@winstonwachter.com
www.winstonwachter.com
Ascending Limacons for Pythagoras 2016 acrylic on canvas 48 x 48 inches
Port Limacons of Pathagoras 2016 acrylic on canvas 48 x 48 inches
“The language of mathematics provides Schultheis with a deeply personal way to understand and describe the world. These paintings serve as a portal into a realm where mathematical ideas become as poetic as they are rational, challenging us to sift through the layers of paint to discover a labyrinth of ideas and histories, both universal and personal, embedded within. The process used to create these paintings reminds us that art and math are not mysteries themselves but, rather, beautifully constructed languages through which we attempt to understand ineable phenomena."  -JD Talasek Director of Exhibitions and Cultural Programs National Academy of Sciences
Opposite: Discovering Infinitesimal Breaths, 2016, acrylic on canvas, 60 x 72 inches
Luminaries in the North, 2016, acrylic on canvas 42 x 36 inches
Luminaries in the East, 2016, acrylic on canvas 42 x 36 inches
Luminaries in the South, 2016, acrylic on canvas 42 x 36 inches
Luminaries in the West, 2016, acrylic on canvas 42 x 36 inches
Handwritten equations, painted geometric forms, expressionistic brushwork, color and luminosity— these are the means by which Schultheis conveys his meanings and his subject matter. Each painting is in his words “a conversation” with himself, a mindscape of current thoughts… about contemporary mathematics, ancient history, his daily activities, his life, and his relationships. From a small pine cone picked up on a walk to the eternity of William Blake’s eponymous poem, all that Schultheis encounters is explored and understood through geometry. Even his grief at the thoughtless killing of some fledgling swallows is eased by the application of mathematics. While Schultheis sees the physical world as did Paul Cézanne, treating “nature by means of the cylinder, the sphere, the cone,” he also constructs geometries about love, family, and emotions. For him, as for Archimedes, “all is mathematics.” -Patricia Grieve Watkinson Patricia Grieve Watkinson is an essayist on the art and artists of the Pacific Northwest. She is the former director of the Museum of Art at Washington State University, the Fort Wayne Museum of Art in Indiana, and Pilchuck Glass School in Washington State.
Opposite: Polar Rhapsodies, 2016, acrylic on canvas, 36 x 60 inches
Three Indigo Roses for Leibniz, 2016, acrylic on canvas, 36 x 24 inches Opposite: Polar Troves, 2016, acrylic on canvas, 36 x 48 inches
One Indigo Roses for Leibniz, 2016, acrylic on canvas, 36 x 24 inches
Gold Limacons for Pythagoras 2016 acrylic on canvas 72 x 72 inches
Education 1993 M.S., Labor Economics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 1990 B.A., Honors Economics, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 1989 History and Italian, Scuola Per Stranieri, Siena, Italy Selected Solo Exhibitions 2016 Bouquets, Luminaries, Menageries – Stories Told in Calculus, Winston Wächter Fine Art, Seattle, WA Integrating on Celadon, J. Willott Gallery, Palm Desert, CA Pythagorean Gems, Laura Rathe Fine Art, Dallas, TX 2015 Pythagorean Interludes, Forre and Company, Aspen, CO Pythagorean Eyes, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Dance of the Limacons, Laura Rathe Fine Art, Houston, TX 2014 Dreams of Pythagoras, Winston Wächter Fine Art, Seattle, WA The Geometry of Archimedes, Wentworth Institute of Technology, Boston, MA 2013 Universal Couplings of Archimedes, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Isosceles Cones of Archimedes, Chase Young Gallery, Boston, MA Archimedes Ellipses, Davis and Cline Gallery, Ashland, OR Archimedes Sphaerica, Pryor Fine Art, Atlanta, GA 2012 Seas of Archimedes, Forre and Company, Aspen, CO Gardens of Archimedes, Winston Wächter Fine Art, Seattle, WA 2011 Spherical Triangles of Menelaus, David Richard Contemporary, Santa Fe, NM Winds of Menelaus, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Sales of Euclid, David and Cline Gallery, Ahsland, OR Spheres of Menelaus, Chase Young Gallery, Boston, MA 2010 Optics of Euclid, Winston Wächter Fine Art, Seattle, WA Eccentricities of Apollo, Janeila Farms Research Campus, Howard Hughes Institute, Chevy Chase, MD Lotus of Euclid, Forre and Company, Aspen, CO 2009 Wings of Apollonius, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Loci of Apollonius, Davis and Cline Gallery, Ashland, OR Conic Symmetries, Chase Gallery, Boston, MA Apollonius Blossoms, The PEW Charitable Trusts, Washington, D.C. 2008 Conics of Apollonius, Winston Wächter Fine Art, Seattle, WA
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003 2002
Toroids of Ganymede, Winston Wächter Fine Art, Seattle, WA Interior Toroids, Chase Gallery, Boston, MA Villarceau Series, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Villarceau Circles, Davis and Cline Gallery, Ashland OR Toroid Glissettes, Winston Wächter Fine Art, New York, NY Equilateral Toroids, Davis and Cline Gallery, Ashland, OR Spherical Lunes, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Limaçons, Chase Gallery, Boston, MA Cardioids, Ballard Fetherston Gallery, Seattle, WA Cycloids, Rotunda Gallery, National Academy of Sciences, Washington, D.C. Cycloids, Keck Center Gallery, National Academies, Washington, D.C. Cycloids Preview, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Cycloids Preview, Ballard Fetherston Gallery, Seattle, WA Harmonic Oscillations, Fairbanks Gallery, Oregon State University, OR Writing on the Wall, Ballard Fetherston Gallery, Seattle, WA Harmonic Quadrants, Cervini Haas Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ Parabolic Symmetries, Davis and Cline Gallery, Ashland, OR Harmonic Oscillations, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Geometric Progressions, Soren Christensen Gallery, New Orleans, LA Correlations, Ballard Fetherston Gallery, Seattle, WA Elasticity, Margo Jacobsen Gallery, Portland, OR Equilibria, Soren Christensen, New Orleans, LA Open Systems, Ballard Fetherston Gallery, Seattle, WA White Math, Margo Jacobsen Gallery, Portland, OR White Matrix, Patricia Cameron Fine Art, Seattle, WA Outliers, Patricia Cameron Fine Art, Seattle, WA Griot, Patricia Cameron Fine Art, Seattle, WA
2001 2000 1999 Selected Group Exhibitions 2012 Petits Tableaux, Winston Wächter Fine Art, Seattle, WA Large Works, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Tandem, Chase Gallery, Boston, MA
2011 2010 2009
2008
2007
2006
2006
2005
Let Me Wander In Your Garden, Chase Gallery, Boston, MA Gallery Artists, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Gallery Artists, Chase Gallery, Boston, MA Abstract Expressionism, Forre and Company, Aspen, CO Gallery Artists, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Up on The Wall, 6 Painters From the West, University of Idaho Prichard Art Gallery, Moscow ID Gallery Artists, Chase Gallery, Boston, MA Summer Selections, Winston Wächter Fine Art, Seattle, WA Gallery Artists, Davis and Cline Gallery, Ashland, OR Winter Group Show, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Introductions, Forre and Company, Aspen, CO Art in the Embassies Program, U.S. State Dept, Athens, Greece Gallery Artists, Chase Gallery, Boston, MA Washington Project for the Arts, Katzen Center, Washington, D.C. Gallery Artists, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Gallery Artists, Davis and Cline Gallery, Ashland, OR Seattle Art Museum Rental Sales Gallery, Seattle, WA Gallery Artists, Chase Gallery, Boston, MA Gallery Artists, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Gallery Artists, Chase Gallery, Boston, MA Please Do Not Touch, Winston Wächter Fine Art, New York, NY Two Person Show, Cervini Haas Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ Aesthetics/Analytics, Seattle Art Museum Rental Sales Gallery, Seattle, WA Building Tradition: Contemporary Northwest Art from Tacoma Art Museum, Whatcom Museum of History and Art, Bellingham, WA Spring Highlights, Winston Wächter Fine Art, Seattle, WA Parabolic Urns, Cheryl Pelavin Fine Arts, New York, NY Gallery Artists, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Gallery Artists, Chase Gallery, Boston, MA Gallery Artists, Ballard Fetherston Gallery, Seattle, WA Ballard Artists, Seattle Art Museum Rental Sales Gallery, Seattle, WA Dialog Between Space, Shenzhen, China
2004
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2001 1995
Gallery Artists, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Blue Waters, Ballard Fetherston Gallery, Seattle, WA Gallery Artists, Froelick Gallery, Portland, OR Gallery Artists, Seattle Art Museum Rental Sales Gallery, Seattle, WA Invitational Group Show, Cervini Haas Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ Grand Opening, Seattle Art Museum Rental Sales Gallery, Seattle, WA Group Show, Washington State Convention & Trade Center, Seattle, WA Gallery Artists, Margo Jacobsen Gallery, Portland, OR Best of Show, Benefit Auction, Bellevue Art Museum, Bellevue, WA Northwest Print Council Exhibit, Portland Art Museum, Portland, OR Gallery Artists, Patricia Cameron Fine Art, Seattle, WA Pacific Northwest Annual, Bellevue Art Museum, Bellevue, WA
Collections Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Washington, D.C. Hyatt Regency, Bellevue, WA Ritz Carlton, New York, NY Oregon Health Sciences University, Portland, OR Citigroup, Seattle, WA City of Seattle, Seattle, WA Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, Seattle, WA Four Seasons Olympic Hotel, Seattle, WA Ritz Carlton, New York, NY The United States Embassy, Athens, Greece Mathematical Assoc. of America, Washington D.C. National Academy of Sciences, Washington, D.C. Portland Community College, Portland, OR Rainier Pacific Bank, Tacoma, WA Seattle Athletic Club, Seattle, WA Swedish Medical Center, Seattle, WA Tacoma Art Museum, Tacoma, WA Univ. of Washington Medical Center, Seattle, WA
Luminaries for Kandinsky, 2016, acrylic on canvas, 60 x 96 inches