SpaceAge Posted September 25, 2009 Share Posted September 25, 2009 Houston Mod invites you to an evening reception for the exhibit Back to the Future: Elements of "Modern" in Mid-Century Texas Art Friday, September 25, 2009, 5 - 7 PM William Reaves Fine Art, 2313 Brun, Houston, Texas 77019 Join fellow mod enthusiasts for refreshments and a special gallery talk on leading Houston mid-century artists. Over 60 works will be on display. Link to the catalog Viewers of the show will receive the rare opportunity to step back some six decades in time to examine great art that presaged the "future" of Texas and Houston art. Artists Included: David Adickes/ Jack Boynton/ David Cargill/ Patty Cargill/ Bill Condon/ Ben Culwell/ Henri Gadbois/ William Hoey/ Dorothy Hood/ Amy Freeman Lee/ Leila McConnell/ Herbert Mears/ Robert Morris/ Dimitri Parsons/ Robert Preusser/ Charles Bert Rees/ Bill Reily/ Robert Rogan/ Charles Schorre/ Richard Stout/ Stella Sullivan/ Mckie Trotter/ Dan Wingren/ and many others. Houston Mod members will receive a 5% discount on any paintings purchased at the event and WRFA will donate $100 of each sale to Houston Mod. Background information on the exhibit by Bill Reaves: Texas art underwent a metamorphosis in the middle years of the twentieth century. The nation and Texas experienced bold and dynamic changes during the years between 1945 and 1965, and art was no different. The times were rife with creative expansion; sparking a period of broadened artistic expression which pushed far beyond comfortable traditions of impressionist landscapes and familiar modes of American Scene to make room for a newer, more abstract milieu. It was in this moment that Texas art fully confronted, and eventually came to embrace, the elements of “modernism”. It is not that abstract art forms were unknown in Texas prior to this time. Indeed, sophisticated collectors such as San Antonio’s Marion Koogler McNay were accumulating European masters such as Van Gogh and Picasso as early as the late 1920s, and a few indigenous artists such as Robert Preusser and Frank Dolejska were actively producing and entering abstract works in Houston Annuals by the late 1930s. Still, abstract statements remained on the margins of the art field in Texas until after World War II, resting in static states until the energy surge that jolted post-war America propelled new and varied approaches to the fore. The emergence and growth of “modern art” in Texas was nurtured and fed through a loosely-coupled network of art museums, artist’s leagues and university art departments. During the period of reference, these art establishments ushered in progressive art movements by mounting exhibitions, sponsoring demonstrations and offering art instruction which exposed Texans (both artists and patrons alike) to modernist trends extant in the larger American and international art circles. Inspired and informed by such art movements as cubism, Dadaism and expressionism, abstraction grew and progressed in Texas, assuming both objective and non-objective modes. Annual juried exhibitions such as The Texas Generals and competitive exhibitions such as those sponsored by Dallas oilman D.D. Feldman presented new venues for public display of modernist works and gave state-wide exposure to Texas painters working in this mode. As a consequence, the imagery and style of Texas works produced in this time assumed a dramatically different “look” from their pre-war predecessors. Paintings of the period, and particularly those of younger Texas artists, began to reference more diverse and sophisticated subject matter. Artists presented their subjects through flattened planes, altered perspectives and stylized compositions. This description is continued on the William Reaves website. We hope to see you there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.