Lone Star Modernism:
A Celebration of Mid-Century Texas Art Adickes Alexander Boynton Briggs Collins Condon Culwell Curry Edelman Forsyth Freed Gadbois Hoey Hood Huband Freeman Lee Lester Lewis Martin Maxwell
McConnell Mears Oliver Polley Paine Pemberton Preusser Reily Rogan Schorre Snell Snowden Sprohge Stout Sullivan Tinkle Trotter Waldrip-Taylor Weimerskirch White
April 1 - May 7, 2011
WILLIAM REAVES FINE ART
Lone Star Modernism:
A Celebration of Mid-Century Texas Art The years between 1945-1970, roughly and appreciative audiences; and a time when coinciding with the end of World War II and the educational opportunities in the arts proliferated advent of Vietnam, comprise one of the most in public schools, museum schools, university art lively and productive periods departments and art leagues, in Texas art. With the state enticing larger numbers of emerging from tandem talented and creative Texeffects of a Great Depresans to pursue their muses sion and a Great War, the through the arts. Art enterrenewed growth and prosperprise in Texas seemed alive ity of these middle years and teeming with energetic gave rise to twentieth-century and creative growth. modernism in the Lone Star State. It was an exciting This middle-century 34. Mears, Untitled (Gray Still Life with Carrots), n/d and energetic time for Texas period fostered a new art and artists- a time when generation of Texas artmuseums gave serious attention to a burgeoning ists, heretofore unrivaled in their creative output. community of regional artists; a time when galler- Collectively they produced a distinctive oeuvre ies multiplied, showing Texas fare to ever-growing of Texas paintings that were dramatically differ-
ent from their predecessors in style and subject matter. Texas art at mid-century forged a new brand of Lone Star art. It provided a period and output worthy of celebration - and in this exhibition William Reaves Fine Art does exactly that! In Lone Star Modernism, the gallery pays tribute to 40 of the state’s leading mid-century artists, and offers viewers a rich mosaic of the progressive styles and diverse subject matter which emerged in Texas painting during this dynamic period.
sacrifices of war, there was suddenly time and opportunity to paint, show and look at art, and there began to be more discretionary income to enable collectors to acquire works of art. Returning servicemen rife with artistic tendencies eagerly cashed in GI Bill entitlements to pursue art instruction at university art centers. Booming art schools at universities and museums gave rise to loosely-coupled “colonies” of local artists, and these communities of artists in cities such as Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth and San Antonio eventually formed This “new generation” active Contemporary Art Associaof Texas artists benefitted from tions to provide themselves the 44. Snell, Untitled, c.1953 greater exposure and broader infrastructure through which to patronage which emerged during introduce their own work and that of their a post-war art boom. After the regimens and mentors and muses to local publics.
With such activity swirling around them, The “Generals” began in 1940 and continued it was inevitable that the museum community through 1965. They proved to be catalytic, highly would also expand its sphere of influence on the anticipated art events in mid-century Texas, growing Texas art scene. Most of providing “gatherings” for artists the state’s established museums across the state, as well as mumaintained long traditions of hostseum focal points for their works. ing “annuals” - juried exhibitions Like the local annuals, the Texas of local artists displayed each Generals provided museum acyear. The Museum of Fine Arts cess for Texas artists, along with in Houston, for instance began prizes, presenting indigenous artits Annual Exhibition of Houston ists their most significant avenues Artists as early as 1925. Buildfor entry into the collections of the ing upon and expanding these state’s leading museums. local shows, museum leaders in Dallas, San Antonio, Houston and Besides museums and conlater other Texas cities banded to- 48. Sullivan, Portrait of McCracken, 1957 temporary art societies, private gether to create an annual Texasgalleries also blossomed on the wide competition, inventing the “Texas General Texas art scene during this time. Emerging in Exhibitions” as annual juried shows of work by all Houston alone during these times were such stalTexas artists, which traveled a state-wide circuit. wart gallerists as Ben Dubose, Katherine Swen-
son, Polly Marsters, Meredith Long and a host of others. Likewise, contemporary galleries sprang up in other major urban centers. They showed the full measure of contemporary style, featuring both local and national artists to local art constituencies. These galleries attracted large and active crowds, and they sparked the formation of private art collections.
Knoedler’s Gallery of New York showed Texas Contemporary Artists, an exhibition of 52 Texas artists, many of whom are shown here. (Robert Preusser’s Ecclesia, for instance, was exhibited at the Knoedler show.) In the same year, Lone Star art landed on the “left” coast as well, celebrated in the San Francisco Museum of Art’s exhibition entitled Texas Wildcats.
Not only were mid-century The artists shown in this exhibiTexas artists “hot” within their own tion at William Reaves Fine Art were state, galleries and museums in among the most prominent of this dyAmerica’s most prominent art centers namic period. Their works were condiscovered the action in Texas as sistently juried into the group exhibiwell. Dozens of post-war Texas tions referenced above. Many gained painters were routinely showing in national prominence through their 38. Preusser, Eclessia, 1952 New York, Los Angeles and Chicago participation in significant national galleries during the period. In 1952, for instance, exhibitions as well. They were progenitors of the
abstract in Lone Star painting, and most have been long-since acknowledged through inclusion in permanent collections of leading art institutions. Virtually all were showing at significant galleries of the time, and many contributed further in roles as art instructors at state museums and universities. The artists here constitute a veritable “who’s who” of midcentury Texas painters. What stands as the most significant testament to their time 55. White, Edge of Town, 1958 and accomplishments, however, is the quality and resilience of the art they produced. While executed scores ago, the aesthetic inventiveness and painterly effectiveness of these works remain apparent. The best
mid-century renditions remain current in their appeal and hold up with a freshness of new-found work. Surveying these works reveals the range of currents evident in the state’s art communities during this period, showing Texas deference to international trends such as cubism and expressionism. Mid-century painting in Texas, therefore, demonstrates a spirited embrace of modernism in all its varied forms, underscoring the natural progressions of artists within our borders and the influences from without. These works also provide a context and a frame of reference for the art trends and tendencies that occurred within our state before and after these paintings were
produced. We encourage patrons to avail themselves of this magnificent exhibition of mid-century art. We feel certain that you will find much to admire, and gain a renewed sense of appreciation for this vital period in our state’s art history and a new regard for the artists who lovingly labored in the Lone Star State. -Bill Reaves, Sarah Beth Wilson, and Leslie Thompson
Lone Star Modernism:
A Celebration of Mid-Century Texas Art Exhibition Checklist Artist
1. David Adickes 2. David Adickes 3. John Alexander 4. Jack Boynton 5. Jack Boynton 6. Lamar Briggs 7. David Brownlow 8. Lowell Collins 9. Bill Condon 10. Bill Condon 11. Ben Culwell 12. Ben Culwell 13. Ed Curry 14. Don Edelman 15. Don Edelman 16. Don Edelman 17. Don Edelman
Title
Bullfighter (with Blue Border) Untitled (Green Still Life) Untitled Same Old 7 and 6 Untitled Drawing 9 Yellow Sky Proud Fisherman Figure Untitled Untitled (Cathedral) Action Untitled (Airplane) Church on a Hill Untitled 1 Untitled 2 Water Tower on Santa Fe Railway What Did I Do to Be So Black and Blue
Date
c.1965 1950 c.1972 1959 1957 c.1965 1953 1958 1962 1953 1942 1942-44 1964 c.1948-51 c.1948-51 c.1948-51 c.1948-51
Medium
Size (inches)
oil/canvas gouache/paper oil/canvas graphite/paper mixed media oil/canvas oil/board encaustic/board mixed media mixed media mixed media ink/wax crayon/ tempera/paper oil/board engraving engraving mixed media acrylic/board
23x17 9x11 46x46 5 1/2 x12 11x6 50x40 74x26 48x6 20x13 1/2 13x10 1/2 7 3/4 x8 6 1/4 x9 2/3 24x36 4x3 1/4 4 1/2 x5 1/4 7 3/4 x5 3/4 36x23 1/2
Artist
18. Constance Forsyth 19. Frank Freed 20. Henri Gadbois 21. Henri Gadbois 22. William Hoey 23. Dorothy Hood 24. Dorothy Hood 25. Otis Huband 26. Amy Freeman Lee 27. William Lester 28. Paul Lewis 29. Martin Anthony 30. Martin Anthony 31. Paul Maxwell 32. Leila McConnell 33. Herb Mears 34. Herb Mears 35. Kermit Oliver 36. Joseph Polley Paine 37. Olive Pemberton 38. Robert Preusser 39. Robert Preusser
Title
West Texas Mountains Untitled (Building with Three Archways) A Picnic Tree Forms Still Life with Apples Butterflies of the Future Fear Two Images Hercules Still Life with Sunflower Seed Blue Veil Untitled (House with Man) Winter Rye Untitled (Night Scene) Myrtle Still Life with Mask Untitled (Gray Still Life with Carrots) Homage to Faust Morocco Doves Ecclesia Untitled 1
Date
1966 n/d 1961 1957 n/d 1967 1964 1966 c.1957 1947 1962 1971 1972 1962 1949 1956 n/d 1968 1956 1959 1952 1936
Medium
watercolor oil/canvas oil/canvas oil/canvas pastel/paper pen/ink pen/ink oil/canvas watercolor oil/board oil/canvas acrylic/board acrylic/board oil/canvas oil/canvas oil/canavs oil/board oil/canvas oil/board mixed media oil/board mixed media
Size (inches)
16x22 1/2 18x14 36x48 34x24 15 1/2 x20 1/2 26x20 26x20 23 5/8 x33 14 1/2 x10 20x24 30x24 22x18 18x24 36x30 24x16 20x25 20x24 40x40 30x30 10x5 40x17 12x9
Artist
Title
Date
40. Robert Preusser 41. Bill Reily 42. Robert Rogan 43. Charles Schorre 44. Don Snell 45. Chester Snowden 46. Erik Sprohge 47. Richard Stout 48. Stella Sullivan 49. Jack Tinkle 50. McKie Trotter 51. McKie Trotter 52. Patty Waldrip-Taylor 53. Robert Weimerskirch 54. Robert Weimerskirch 55. Ralph White
Untitled 3 Untitled Landscape II Tropical Interior Untitled (Bull), 3/30 Untitled Untitled Men Viewing Art Evenings Fall Portrait of McCracken Spirit of Clay Commemoration (Archway) Watermelon The Fruit Vendor Acrobat Sister Rosa Lee Edge of Town
1937 1955 1965 1968 c.1953 n/d 1966 1966 1957 c.1958 1954 c.1949 n/d c.1960-64 c.1960-64 1958
Medium
mixed media oil/board oil/canvas serigraph oil/board oil/board oil/board acrylic/canvas oil/canvas mixed media oil/canvas oil/canvas oil/canvas ceramic ceramic oil/sand/board
Size (inches)
14x20 24x30 34x27 20x28 40x30 16x8 48x36 36x48 30x24 20x26 50x38 45x30 52x45 31 1/2x7x6 21x9x6 29x47
1. David Adickes Bullfighter (with Blue Border), c.1965 oil/canvas 23x17 in.
2. David Adickes Untitled (Green Still Life), 1950 gouache/paper 9x11 in.
3. John Alexander Untitled, c.1972 oil/canvas 46x46 in.
4. Jack Boynton Same Old 7 and 6, 1959 graphite/paper 5 1/2 x12 in.
5. Jack Boynton Untitled Drawing 9, 1957 mixed media 11x6 in.
6. Lamar Briggs Yellow Sky, c.1965 oil/canvas 50x40 in.
7. David Brownlow Proud Fisherman, 1953 oil/board 74x26 in.
8. Lowell Collins Figure, 1958 encaustic/board 48x6 in.
9. Bill Condon Untitled, 1962 mixed media 20x13 1/2 in.
10. Bill Condon Untiled (Cathedral), 1953 mixed media 13x10 1/2 in.
11. Ben Culwell Action, 1942 mixed media 7 3/4 x8 in.
12. Ben Culwell Untitled (Airplane), 1942-44 ink/wax crayon/tempera/paper 6 1/4 x9 2/3 in.
13. Ed Curry Church on a Hill, 1964 oil/board 24x36 in.
14. Don Edelman Untitled 1, c.1958-51 engraving 4x3 1/4 in.
15. Don Edelman Untitled 2, c.1948-51 engraving 4 1/2 x5 1/4 in.
16. Don Edelman Water Tower on Santa Fe Railway, c.1948-51 mixed media 7 3/4 x5 3/4 in.
17. Don Edelman What Did I Do to Be So Black and Blue, c.1960 acrylic/board 36x23 1/2 in.
18. Constance Forsyth West Texas Mountains, 1966 watercolor 16x22 1/2 in.
19. Frank Freed Untitled (Building with Three Archways), n/d oil/canvas 18x24 in.
20. Henri Gadbois A Picnic, 1961 oil/canvas 36x48 in.
21. Henri Gadbois Tree Forms, 1957 oil/canvas 34x24 in.
22. William Hoey Still Life with Apples, n/d pastel/paper 15 1/2 x20 1/2 in.
23. Dorothy Hood Butterflies of the Future, 1967 pen/ink 26x20 in.
24. Dorothy Hood Fear, 1964 pen/ink 26x20 in.
25. Otis Huband Two Images, 1966 oil/canvas 23 5/8 x33 in.
26. Amy Freeman Lee Hercules, c.1957 watercolor 14 1/2 x10 in.
27. William Lester Still Life with Sunflower Seed, 1947 oil/board 20x24 in.
28. Paul Lewis Blue Veil, 1962 oil/canvas 30x24 in.
29. Anthony Martin Untitled (House with Man), 1971 acrylic/board 22x18 in.
30. Anthony Martin Winter Rye, 1972 acrylic/board 18x24 in.
31. Paul Maxwell Untitled (Night Scene), 1962 oil/canvas 36x30 in.
32. Leila McConnell Myrtle, 1949 oil/canvas 24x16 in.
33. Herb Mears Still Life with Mask, 1956 oil/canvas 20x25 in.
34. Herb Mears Untitled (Gray Still Life with Carrots), n/d oil/board 20x24 in.
35. Kermit Oliver Homage to Faust, 1968 oil/canvas 40x40 in.
36. Joseph Polley Paine Morocco, 1956 oil/board 30x30 in.
37. Olive Pemberton Doves, 1959 mixed media 10x5 in.
38. Robert Preusser Ecclesia, 1952 oil/board 40x17 in.
39. Robert Preusser Untitled 1, 1936 mixed media 12x9 in.
40. Robert Preusser Untitled 3, 1937 mixed media 14x20 in.
41. Bill Reily Untitled Landscape II, 1955 oil/board 24x30 in.
42. Robert Rogan Tropical Interior, 1965 oil/canvas 34x27 in.
43. Charles Schorre Untitled (Bull), 3/30, 1968 serigraph 20x28 in.
44. Don Snell Untitled, c.1953 oil/board 40x30 in.
45. Chester Snowden Untitled, n/d oil/board 16x8 in.
46. Erik Sprohge Men Viewing Art, 1966 oil/board 48x36 in.
47. Richard Stout Evenings Fall, 1966 acrylic/canvas 36x48 in.
48. Stella Sullivan Portrait of McCracken, 1957 oil/canvas 30x24 in.
49. Jack Tinkle Spirit of Clay, c.1958 mixed media 20x26 in.
50. McKie Trotter Commemoration (Archway), 1954 oil/canvas 50x38 in.
51. McKie Trotter Watermelon, c.1949 oil/canvas 45x30 in.
52. Patty Waldrip-Taylor The Fruit Vendor, n/d oil/canvas 52x45 in.
53. Robert Weimerskirch Acrobat, c.1960-64 ceramic 31 1/2 x7x6 in.
54. Robert Weimerskirch Sister Rosa Lee, c.1960-64 ceramic 21x9x6 in.
55. Ralph White Edge of Town, 1958 oil/board 29x47 in.