1 15 6 https://omeka.wilkes.edu/omeka/files/original/b1e4525250ab0ce13153d517adead8d3.pdf e8e3ea6832da561c69f79e020726b5db PDF Text Text �AN EXHIBITION OF PAINTINGS BY THE EIGHT robert hcnri arthur b. davies william glackens ernest lavvson georgeluks maurice prendergast E.S. FARLEY LIBRARY WILKES UNIVERSITY WILKES-BARRE, PA everelt shinn john sloan MARCH 9 — APRIL 1, 1979 WILKES COLLEGE SORDONI ART GALLERY 1 �ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Mr. J. Philip Richards, Director of the Sordoni Gallery, who lent invaluable aid in the selection process; The Advisory Commission of the Wilkes College Sordoni Art Gallery makes grateful acknowledgment to the follow­ ing lenders and to those who through their interest, generos­ ity, and cooperation have so greatly enhanced the success of this exhibition: Mrs. Cara Berryman, Exhibitions Coordinator of the Sor­ doni Gallery, who expertly handled the many logistical prob­ lems involved in an undertaking so wide in scope; Dr. William Sterling, Chairman of the Wilkes College Art Department, for his exacting work in this catalogue; BUCKNELL UNIVERSITY, (George M. Jenks, Director) Mr. Robert S. Capin, President of Wilkes College, whose cooperation knew no bounds; LEHIGH UNIVERSITY, (Ricardo Viera, Director of Exhibitions and Collection) - Dr. Thomas Kelly, Dean of External Affairs of Wilkes College, whose liason work smoothed all problems; PENNSYLVANIA ACADEMY OF THE FINE ARTS, (Richard J. Boyle, Director) Mr. George Pawlush, Director of Wilkes College Public Relations, and Mrs. Jane Manganella, Assistant Director, who handled all phases of publicity and public relations; READING PUBLIC MUSEUM & ART GALLERY, (Bruce L. Dietrich, Director) SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY, (Domenic J. lacono, Director) Mrs. Arnold Rifkin, who contributed her intimate knowl­ edge of The Eight, and assisted in much needed gallery con­ tacts; VASSAR COLLEGE, (Peter Morrin, Director) THE WESTMORELAND COUNTY MUSEUM OF ART, (Paul A. Chew, Director) Mrs. Esther Davidowitz, for her invaluable suggestions in promoting this retrospect. MUSEUM OF ART, PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY, (William Hull, Director) And to all members of the Sordoni Art Gallery Advisory Commission without whose aid and support this presenta­ tion might not have been made possible. COE-KERR GALLERY INC. BERRY HILL GALLERIES We sincerely wish that all visitors who are destined to view this show, might share the same excitement, we who gathered it experienced during the past twelve months. KRAUSHAAR GALLERIES HIRSCHL & ADLER GALLERIES INC. Several private area collectors who for personal reasons chose to remain anonymous. ALBERT MARGOLIES Chairman, Advisory Commission The exhibition of works by the Ash Can School — the carefully selected product of the Immortal Eight, could not have been mounted to engage our intelligence; to exhilarate our feelings; to stimulate our sensual experience, without the dedicated assistance of the following: Sordoni Art Gallery Wilkes College Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania 2 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE EIGI Just about a lifetime ago, on February 3,1903 ant exhibition of paintings opened in New YorJ Gallery. It was to be among a handful of landr which, over the next few years, would arouse A out of its complacency and into the mainstream o century modernism. The exhibition consisted o eight American artists who were operating eithei or barely within the artistic establishment of the ert Henri, John Sloan, William Glackens, George rett Shinn, Maurice Prendergast, Ernest Lawson, B. Davies. Two years later, Henri and Sloan helped to o other landmark show, the Exhibition of Indepenc in direct competition with the annual display by t Academy of Design, that august bastion of ai conservatism. In 1913, another member of the Ei B. Davies, became a prime mover of the renowr Show which brought together, for the first time hundreds of works by the leading avant-gard Europe and the United States. Today's spectator would perceive striking sty ences between the 1908 and 1913 events. The A highlighted such radical groups as the Cubists a ves, while the exhibition of The Eight offered w< ly representational character, with an occasion; into Impressionism. Europe's progressive front on from Impressionism some twenty years earl: Matisse's Fauvism was officially three years old, was on the verge of Cubism. The pace of artis ment in America clearly lagged behind that of sweeping changes were not to be made ovem 1850s and 1860s the French realist painters C Manet had turned their backs on the accepted < romantic traditions of the French Academy, and �ip Richards, Director of the Sordoni Gallery, luable aid in the selection process; Jerryman, Exhibitions Coordinator of the Sorvho expertly handled the many logistical prob­ in an undertaking so wide in scope; Sterling, Chairman of the Wilkes College Art or his exacting work in this catalogue; S. Capin, President of Wilkes College, whose lew no bounds; ; Kelly, Dean of External Affairs of Wilkes : liason work smoothed all problems ; Pawlush, Director of Wilkes College Public I Mrs. Jane Manganella, Assistant Director, II phases of publicity and public relations ; 1 Rifkin, who contributed her intimate knowl|ght, and assisted in much needed gallerv conDavidowitz, for her invaluable suggestions in ; retrospect. lembers of the Sordoni Art Gallen- Advisory-ithout whose aid and support this presentahave been made possible. y wish that all visitors who are destined to v, might share the same excitement, we who erienced during the past twelve months. 1GOLIES nsory Commission alienPennsylvania SIGNIFICANCE OF THE EIGHT a path for fresh thinking that ultimately drew along it the Impressionists, the Post-Impressionists, and every radical movement of the early twentieth century. Just about a lifetime ago, on February 3,1908, an import­ ant exhibition of paintings opened in New York's Macbeth Gallery. It was to be among a handful of landmark events which, over the next few years, would arouse American art out of its complacency and into the mainstream of twentieth­ century modernism. The exhibition consisted of works by eight American artists who were operating either outside of, or barely within the artistic establishment of the time: Rob­ ert Henri, John Sloan, William Glackens, George Luks, Eve­ rett Shinn, Maurice Prendergast, Ernest Lawson, and Arthur B. Davies. In America, The Eight performed a similar, if somewhat belated function. They were spoilers who championed artis­ tic freedom in a society which had held tenaciously and rev­ erently to the academic line. They were not the first non-con­ formists; men such as Thomas Eakins, Winslow Homer, and Albert Ryder had successfully gone their own way, but they had not crystallized widespread rebellion; Mary Cassatt and Whistler had created more radical styles in their time, but only as expatriates little known or appreciated in their native land. The Eight, on the other hand, set off the first explosion to seriously undermine the power structure of the academic establishment in America. Two years later, Henri and Sloan helped to organize an­ other landmark show, the Exhibition of Independent Artists, in direct competition with the annual display by the National Academy of Design, that august bastion of authoritarian conservatism. In 1913, another member of the Eight, Arthur B. Davies, became a prime mover of the renowned Armory Show which brought together, for the first time in America, hundreds of works by the leading avant-garde artists of Europe and the United States. The show was precipitated when the National Academy refused to accept works by Sloan and Glackens for their 1907 exhibition. Henri, a member of the Academy jury, could not prevail upon his colleagues, and in fact, found his own work luke-warmly accepted. Therefore, he determined to organ­ ize an independent exhibition which would show work of the more liberal artists. The show of The Eight, as a con­ troversial event, was very well attended, and received as much favorable as hostile criticism. All in all, and with $4,000.00 in sales, it was a success. Today's spectator would perceive striking stylistic differ­ ences between the 1908 and 1913 events. The Armory show highlighted such radical groups as the Cubists and the Fauves, while the exhibition of The Eight offered work of solid­ ly representational character, with an occasional excursion into Impressionism. Europe's progressive front had moved on from Impressionism some twenty years earlier. By 1908, Matisse's Fauvism was officially three years old, and Picasso was on the verge of Cubism. The pace of artistic develop­ ment in America clearly lagged behind that of Europe, and sweeping changes were not to be made overnight. In the 1850s and 1860s the French realist painters Courbet and Manet had turned their backs on the accepted classical and The painters of the Eight did not constitute a homogene­ ous group, and they never exhibited all together again. Lawson and Prendergast were strongly influenced by Impres­ sionism, though in quite different ways, and Davies was a Fantacist, loosely related to the French Symbolists. Only Henri, Sloan, Shinn, Luks, and Glackens formed a long­ standing and fairly closeknit group. These five shared a style of briskly painted realism, similar to Manet's, as well as a passion for ordinary subjects unsentimentally presented, particularly ones drawn from their own urban surroundings (hence their later designation "The Ash Can School"). romantic traditions of the French Academy, and had broken 3 �them squarely in a late nineteenth-century aesthetic. It was as if they had reinvented the wheel, and historians whose primary criterion for achievement was innovation had diffi­ culty looking at work which was "out of date." Robert Henri, the eldest of these five, had been their in­ spirational mentor and supporter back in their Philadelphia days, when he was teaching at the Pennsylvania Academy and they were working as newspaper artists. With their journalistic backgrounds, Glackens, Luks, Shinn, and Sloan responded naturally to Henri's spontaneous realism. These men had not deliberately set out to break new artistic ground, and certainly they don't look very radical today. Indeed, they revered such old masters as Hals, Velasquez, and Goya, who mated candor with powerfully graphic styles. Henri and his Philadelphia friends sought to reveal twen­ tieth-century life with the same candor and visual pungency. The other three members of The Eight were more involved with poetic transformations of the natural world, but all eight were ill-treated by an art establishment which still fa­ vored romantic idylls, classical pastiches, and vignettes of drawing room morality. Several things have happened in the last decade which may be changing this approach. For one thing, as we recede farther from the birth of modernism in Paris, the significance of its initial moments no longer overshadows so completely the importance of the hours of assimilation which followed, especially within the context of the cultural differences which existed between Europe and America. A somewhat analogous situation would be the adoption of Caravaggio's style by younger painters, such as Velasquez, in the seven­ teenth century. The intrinsic power and beauty of Velasquez' early work are not belittled because it resembles Caravag­ gio's. There has also been a widespread return to various forms of naturalism in contemporary art, which places the center of vanguard taste somewhat closer to The Eight than it has been for quite a few decades. At the same time, American scholars (and not just the chauvinistic ones) have begun to outgrow their inferiority complex, vis-a-vis Europe, when it comes to any discussion of American art before our own rev­ olutionary period of the forties and fifties. More than ever before, American art of the past is being looked at on its own terms and for its inherent strength. As historical cata­ lysts, The Eight have always been recognized; as artists in their own right, they may now receive a fresh appraisal. The historical position of The Eight is usually fixed in terms of the group's catalytic role in bringing about an im­ portant change in America's artistic values. By promoting liberalized exhibition opportunities for less conventional art­ ists, they opened the door for a much broader exchange of ideas and tastes. It might not be reaching too far to assign another significance to these painters, particularly the AshCan contingent. Their brash, bravura, paint-loving techni­ que and their sensitivity to the vital presence of the Ameri­ can urban environment place them closer to the Abstract Expressionism of the fifties than we might initially suppose. In a spiritual sense, The Eight were the forerunners of the New York School which erupted on the international scene after World War II. It is the purpose of this exhibition to reveal The Eight on both these levels. As we experience them together again, we can perhaps more easily imagine their impact in IPOS.* At the same time, we can look at them with an open mind, in the solace of another day. Yet, except for Prendergast, whose style approached a Fauve-like abstractness and therefore seemed more modem, The Eight have rarely enjoyed the limelight in twentieth­ century criticism. Modernist scholars were not inclined to look beyond the fact that these painters resembled Manet and his generation more than anyone else, which placed * The present show, while representing al! the artists of The Eight, does not include those pictures which were in the original exhibition (with one exception). Many oi these works are later, and show something of the various directions the artists leek during their careers. 4 SELECTED BIBLIC ARTHUR B. DAVIES, 1862-1928. Introduction by H. K. Prior. V Institute, Utica, New York, 1962. BERRY-HILL, H & S. Ernest La~.cn pressionist. Leigh-on-Sea, Englar BREUNING, M. Maurice Prendergi BROWN, M. W. American Paintin to the Depression. Princeton, 195 CARY, E. L. George Luks. New Yor DU BOIS, G. P. Ernest Lawson. Nev DU BOIS, G. P. John Sloan. New Yi DU BOIS, C. P. William J. Glacken: THE EIGHT (Exhibition Catalogu Art, Brooklyn, 1944. FINK, L. M. and J. C. TAYLOR Aca Tradition in American Art. Wash GALLATIN, A. E. John Sloan. New �th-century aesthetic. It -was ■heel, and historians whose it was innovation had diffi"outof date." J in the last decade which For one thing, as we recede sm in Paris, the significance overshadows so completely ssimilation which followed, >f the cultural differences and America. A somewhat e adoption of Caravaggio's as Velasquez, in the sevener and beauty of Velasquez' tuse it resembles Caravag- ;ad return to various forms rt, which places the center er to The Eight than it has t the same time, American nistic ones) have begun to ;, vis-a-vis Europe, when it can art before our own revind fifties. More than ever t is being looked at on its Irength. As historical cata:n recognized; as artists in eive a fresh appraisal. tion to reveal The Eight on ce them together again, we their impact in 1908.* At em with an open mind, in SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY GLACKENS, I. William Glackens Er the Ashcan Croup: The Emergence of Realism in American Art. New York, 1957. ARTHUR B. DAVIES, 1862-1928. (Exhibition Catalogue). Introduction by H. K. Prior. Munson-Williams-Proctor Institute, Utica, New York, 1962. GOODRICH, L. John Sloan, 1871-1951. New York, 1952. HENRI, R. The Art Spirit. Philadelphia, 1923. BERRY-HILL, H. & S. Ernest Lawson, N.A.; American Im­ pressionist. Leigh-on-Sea, England, 1968. HOMER, W. I. Robert Henri & His Circle. Ithaca, 1969. BREUNING, M. Maurice Prendergast. New York, 1931. HUNTER, S. "The Eight-Insurgent Realists," Art in Amer­ ica XLIV. (Fall, 1956), 20-22,56-58. BROIVN, M. W. American Painting from the Armory Show to the Depression. Princeton, 1955. THE LIFE & TIMES OF JOHN SLOAN (Exhibition Cata­ logue). Introduction by H. F, Sloan & B. St. John. Dela­ ware Art Center, Wilmington, 1961. CARY, E. L. George Luks. New York, 1931. PERLMAN, BENNARD The Immortal Eight. New York, 1962. DU BOIS, G. P. Ernest Lawson. New York, 1932. DU BOIS, G. P. John Sloan. New Y'ork, 1931. PHILLIPS, D., ET AL. Arthur B. Davies: Essays on the Man and His Art. Cambridge, Massachusetts. 1924. DU BOIS, G. P. William J. Glackens. New York, 1931. 1HE EIGHT ■ Exhibition Catalogue), Brooklyn Museum of RHYS, H. H. Maurice Prendergast. Cambridge, Massachusettes. 1924. Art, Brooklyn, 1944. SCOTT, D. & J. BULLARD John Sloan. Washington, 1971. FINK, L. M. and J. C. TAYLOR Academy: The Academic Tradition in American Art. Washington, D. C., 1975. YOUNG, M. 5. The Eight: The Realist Revolt in American Painting. New York, 1973. GALLATIN, A. E. John Sloan. New York, 1925. I artists cf The Eight, does not include Bbiticn (Hith ere c*rcf*Ucr,} Man> ot Bthe various directions the artists took 5 �Show and several other important exhibitions of the Lime. ROBERT HENRI I Henri's success as a painter was matched by that as a teacher, and his students included such major figures George Bellows, Edward Hopper, and Man Ray. In terms of local interest, it may be noted that during the summer of 1902, Henri painted-landscapes at Black Walnut, Pennsyl­ vania, northwest of Wilkes-Barre, at the home of his wife's parents. "Picnic at Meshoppen," in the present exhibition dates from this visit. In 1907-08, Henri again travelled to Wilkes-Barre, to paint portraits of Mr. & Mrs. George Cot­ ton Smith and Miss Edith Reynolds. (1865-1929 Born in Cincinnati, Ohio) Henri was the doyen of the Philadelphia, or Ash Can, con­ tingent of The Eight. Having lived most of his adolescence in the middle and far west, Henri displayed something of the audacity and rugged individualism typically associated with the American frontier. His father, a land speculator, had killed a man in self-defense in Nebraska, but before his name was cleared, he had changed it and had fled to New Jersey. His son, Robert Henry Cozad, thus became Robert Henri (Hen'-rye). Henri studied at the Pennsylvania Academy under Thomas Anshutz, one of Thomas Eakins' foremost students. His natural inclinations for candor and realism flowed easily into the Eakins tradition. Henri's ambition to excel as an artist carried him to Paris in 1888 for several years of study at the Academe Julien, during which time he was temporar­ ily 'attracted to academic painters, such as his teacher Bougereau. His attempts at acceptance into the prestigious Ecole des Beaux-Arts met with failure until 1891, Gradually, he gravitated toward the loosely-painted realism of Manet, as well as to old masters such as Velasquez and Hals. "Cafe at Night, Paris" oil 32 x 25%" On loan from Lehigh University, Department of Exhibitions and Collection, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. 2. "Rue de Rennes" oil 25% x 32" On loan from Vassar College Art Callery, Poughkeepsie, New York. Back in Philadelphia, Henri's charisma drew a large and faithful following to the weekly open-houses at his studio, where art, literature, philosophy and politics were discussed along with regular forays into madcap fun and frivolity. Henri, Sloan, Glackens, Shinn and Luks cemented their ties there. 4. "Picnic at Meshoppen, Pennsylvania, July 4, la02" oil 26 x 32" On loan from The Westmoreland County Museum of Art. Greensburg, Pennsylvania. After a well-reviewed one-man show at the Pennsylvania Academy in 1897, selection into three Paris salons, and the purchase of one of his paintings by the French government, Henri's place in the art establishment was well-secured. From that position, he fought to liberalize the establishment, particularly with regard to exhibition opportunities for young and progressive artists. He was chief instigator of the exhibition of The Eight and also had a hand in the Armory 5. "Dutch Fisherman" oil 24 x 20" On loan from The Westmoreland County Museum of Art, Greensburg, Pennsylvania. 6 Bridgie Beg' oil 20 x 24" On loan from a private collection. �■ important exhibitions of the time, painter was matched by that as a its included such major figures as I Hopper, and Man Ray. In terms of . noted that during the summer of dscapes at Black Walnut, Pennsylkes-Barre, at the home of his wife's hoppen," in the present exhibition 1907-08, Henri again travelled to ortraits of Mr. & Mrs. George Cot1 Reynolds. J iversify, Department of Exhibitions m, Pennsylvania. '.allege Art Gallery, Poughkeepsie, mnsylvania, July 4,1902" moreland County Museum of Art, ia. moreland County Museum of Art, ia. 3. "Bridgie Beg" oil 20 x 24" On loan from a private collection. 7 �WILLIAM ARTHUR B. DAVIES (1870-l°38 Bom m Phi (1862-1928 Born in Utica, New York) o Davies was not one of the Ash-Can painters, and at first glance it would seem unlikely that he could have had much in common with them. But like them, he sought to free art from the grip of the Academy. With a talent for organiza­ tion and a perspicacious eye, he was largely responsible for putting together the Armory Show in 1913. ft j Davies initially studied landscape painting, then attended the Chicago Academy of Design, and briefly considered a career as a draftsman. He went to New York to further his studies in painting and in 1893 was off to Europe. His dreamy landscapes, often inspired by myths and poems, put him into the orbit of late Romantic and Symbolist artists such as Bocklin, Puvis de Chevannes, and Odilon Redon. I J 7. "Seven Nudes" oil 11 x 213/4" On loan from Lehigh University, Department of Exhibitions and Collection, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. After the Armory Show, Davies began to experiment with Cubism, and also turned more and more to printmaking. His Cubist work put him irrevocably into the mainstream of twentieth-century art, and along with Prendergast, made him the most apparently modem of the painters of The Eight after World War I. 6. "Silvered Heights" oil 18 x 40" On loan from Lehigh University, Department of Exhibitions and Collection, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. 9. "Lane with Trees and Fence" watercolor 4Vz x 7" ' On loan from Lehigh University. Department of Exhibitions and Collection, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. 8. "Bam Swallow" watercolor 7 x 5V2" On loan from Lehigh University, Department of Exhibitions and Collection, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, 10. "Cows Out to Pasture" watercolor 4Vs x 6Vs" On loan from Lehigh University, Department of Exhibition? and Collection, Bethlehem. Pennsylvania. 8 Glackens had little formalj a natural facility and a prod: naturally suited to the artist/ est in serious painting soon newspaper colleagues, to He with whom he came to share France for a year before settli a taste for Manet, the Impress Impressionists. In 1898, Glackens risked li War for McClure's Magazin but mainly from the vantage heard about the day’s events Manet, Glackens’ later work ful vein, similar to Renoir's I Saco at Conway," for examp scenes to nudes, landscapes, Albert Barnes. Glackens wr procuring many of the maste and post-impressionist pain important Barnes Foundation vania. 11. "Nude Dressing Hair’ oil 30 x 25" On loan from Lehigh Univen and Collection, Bethlehem, P 13. Mixed Bouquet, White Vast oil 16 x 14" On loan from the Kraiishaar ( �WILLIAM GLACKENS (1870-1938 Bom in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) Glackens had little formal art training, but was gifted with a natural facility and a prodigeous visual memory’. He was naturally suited to the artist/reporter profession. His inter­ est in serious painting soon led him, via his Philadelphia newspaper colleagues, to Henri, who encouraged him and with whom he came to share a studio. Glackens travelled to France for a year before settling in New York, and developed a taste for Manet, the Impressionists, and several of the PostImpressionists. In 1898, Glackens risked life and limb to cover the Cuban War for McClure’s Magazine. (Luks also covered the War, but mainly from the vantage point of tl^e taverns, where he heard about the day's events.) Early under the influence of Manet, Glackens' later work followed a lighter, more color­ ful vein, similar to Renoir's Impressionism (as seen in "The Saco at Conway," for example). He also turned from urban scenes to nudes, landscapes, and still-lifes. A friend of Dr. Albert Barnes, Glackens was instrumental in selecting and procuring many of the masterpieces of French impressionist and post-impressionist painting which now comprise the important Barnes Foundation Collection in Merion, Pennsyl­ vania. y, Department of Exhibitions nsylvania. [./, Department of Exhibitions Insylvania. I/, Department of Exhibitions fisylvania. ____lXS.1 12. "The Saco at Conway" oil 25 x 30" On loan from the Kraushaar Galleries, New York. II. "Nude Dressing Hair" oil 30 x 25" On loan from Lehigh University, Department of Exhibitions and Collection, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. 14. "Nude with Black Stockings" oil 16J/2 x 13" On loan from a private collection. 13. "Mixed Bouquet, White Vase" oil 16 x 14" On loan from the Kraushaar Galleries, New York. 15. "Flowers in a Pitcher" oil 24 x 18" On loan from the Berry Hill Galleries, New York. 9 ( �a. i.. ,• j. - ERNEST LAWSON j 7-.^ . (1873-1939 Born in Nova Scotia, Canada) *■- •T Lawson was the only member of the group who was pri­ marily a landscapist. During his lifetime, he travelled widely, beginning with a stint as a draftsman in Mexico, where his father was engaged in an engineering project. He later moved to New York, and studied under the American impression­ ists Twachtman and Weir. ■ -'Vh7,. "A ' - -J"/ - -a" - —— In Paris, he came under the influence of European Impres­ sionism as a friend of Sisley. Later trips took him to Spain, Nova Scotia, and west and midwest of the United States, and finally to Florida, where he died. Today, however, we associate Lawson mostly with the up­ per reaches of Manhattan and the Harlem River, where he was living at the time of the Exhibition. More than any other painter, he preserved, with poetic substantiality, the charac­ ter of those places. Working with the palette knife, he ma­ nipulated his scumbled impastos into a surface of "crushed jewels," as one critic described it. And though he is typically thought of as an impressionist, Lawson shared with the Symbolists a belief that color should be used to evoke partic­ ular emotions rather than merely depict natural facts. 16. "High Bridge-Winter" oil 19 x 24" On loan from The Reading Public Museum and .Art Gallery, Reading, Pennsylvania. 17. "Spring" 19. "The Blue Hill" oil ■16 x 197a" On loan from Vassar College Art Callcry. Poughkeepsie, New York. oil 25 x 30" On loan from the Syracuse University Art Collections, Syra­ cuse, New York. 18. "The Everglades" oil 30 x 40" On loan from Vassar College Art Gallery, Poughkeepsie, New York. 20. "The Lock" oil 177a x 3174" On loan from The Westmoreland County Museum of -Art, Greensburg, Pennsylvania. 10 GEORGE 1 (1867-1933 Bern William; Luks, the son of a cuitured phys a free spirit and a mocker of Vi went to Philadelphia in 1833, appa ville performer. He briefly attende emy, and then spent several years met his fellow Ash-Can painters ir Philadelphia Press, where thev r staff of the New York World, lie t ing comic strip, "The Yellow Kid." ly involved in painting, he devi Henri's with dark tonalities and fondness for seventeenth-century dent in this work. Luks, only ha that Frans Hals was incarnate witl came lighter, more colorful, often ; With his irrepressible theatrical was the group's clown prince, gi1 instigating barroom brawls. But h ly honest. On his impulsive and claimed, "I can paint with a shoe lard .,. Guts! Guts! Life! that's mt 22. "Portrait of a Man" oil 3072 x 2574 " On loan from The Westmorelanc Greensburg, Pennsylvania. 23. "Beggar Woman" oil 20 x 16" On loan from a private collection. �GEORGE LUKS ('iScv-lP-'-’ Born in Williamsport, Pennsylvania) I I I I I I I I I Luks, the son of a cultured physician, was from the outset a free spirit and a mocker of Victorian respectability. He went to Philadelphia in 18S3, apparently to become a vaudeville performer. He briefly attended the Pennsylvania Academy, and then spent several years traveling in Europe. Luks met his fellow Ash-Can painters in the art department of the Philadelphia Press, where they regularly met. Joining the staff of the -Veto York World, he took over the first continuing comic strip, "The Yellow Kid." As he became increasingly involved in painting, he developed a style similar to Henri's with dark tonalities and broad brushstrokes. His fondness for seventeenth-century Dutch painting was evi­ dent in this work. Luks, only half-jokingly, used to claim I that Frans Hals was incarnate within him. His later work be| came lighter, more colorful, often garish. Bridge-Winter" ■24" from The ■ng, Pennsylvania. useur: and Art Gallery, 21. "Boy with Bowl" oil 30 x 25" On loan from Lehigh University, Department of Exhibitions and Collection, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. With his irrepressible theatrical flair and brashness, Luks I was the group's clown prince, given to practical jokes and I instigating barroom brawls. But his painting was unfailing| ly honest. On his impulsive and brutally realistic style, he claimed, "I can paint with a shoestring dipped in pitch and lard... Guts! Guts! Life! that's my technique." Blue Hill" 22. "Portrait of a Man" 24. "Old Timer" oil 3074 x 25" On loan from the Hirschl and Adler Galleries Inc., Neto York. I oil 1972" ’an from ’. assar College Art Gal’er-j, Poughkeepsie, York. Lock'­ t317i" an from The Westmoreland County Museum of Art, sburg, Pennsylvania. 30% x 25*4" I Or. loan from The Westmoreland County Museum of Art, I Greensburg, Pennsylvania. 23. "Beggar Woman" 25. "Little Tommy" oil 23 x 177a " On loan from the Coe-Kerr Callery Inc., Neto York. oil 20 x 16" On loan from a private collection. ll �■ ■■--■w. . ?: :-y:x ■ ■ ' EVERETT SHINN Ct (1876-7953 Born in Idstown. New Jersey) MAURICE PRENDERGAST (1859-1924 Born in Newfoundland, Canada) Prendergast, although the eldest of The Eight, was the most avant-garde in style. He came to serious painting graduauj, _____ o ' t as a show-card painter in Boston. ually, out Three having years instarted Paris (1892-95) were spent absorbing the lat­ est developments in art created by the Impressionists, the Neo-Impressionists, the Symbolists, and the Nabis, Despite the fact that he was a provincial painter in his middle thir­ ties, Prendergast gravitated easily to this radical current. By 1900 he had developed a personal style reminiscent of Pierre Bonnard's. Both men shared a love for the festive promenades and graceful landscapes of urban parks. The dancing rhythms of Prendergast's bright patchworked color exuded an air of bourgeois elegance. Perhaps more than any other American painter of the first decade of the twentieth century, Prendergast approached the lyrical color explora­ tions of Matisse. His abstractness, lack of "finish," and lav­ ish color caused his work to be the most strongly attacked by the critics of The Eight, but this was no deterrant to a mature and independent spirit. Later on, he experimented with a somewhat pointillist technique of painting, partly de­ rived from Paul Signac. From beginning to end, Prendergast remained an individualist who charted his own artistic course. "Marblehead Rocks," in the present show, was in the original exhibition of The Eight. Everett Shinn, the youiue.t of The Eight, had the mt varied career. In addition to painting and illustration. Shit at one time or another, teas involved in set design, moti picture art direction and playwriting. i % i 27. , „ "Marblehead Rocks watercolor 14 x 10" On loan from a private collection. Shinn met the other Philadelphia painters at the Penns vania Academy, which he attended while working as an lustrator for the Philadelphia Press Ilis ambition, upon i grating to New York City, was to establish himself ai fashionable illustrator for the better magazines and public ing houses. His pastel of the Metropolitan Opera House a snowstorm, rendered overnight to meet the deadline landing a job with Harper's Weekly, helped to launch h toward the fulfillment of his ambition. Unlike the other A‘ Can painters, Shinn gravitated to the fashionable sections town rather than the humbler ones. Art, University Park, Pennsylvania. His interest in the theater was stirred by his trip to Pr in 1901, and the* pictures he showed with The Eight indue stage scenes. Partly because of this interest, he was parti larly drawn to the art of Degas. He also shared with Dei a love for pastel as a medium, two examples of which app in the present show. 29. "Cresent Beach" oil 10% x 13/16" On loan from Bucknell University, Ellen Clarke Bertrand Li- : 31. "Strong Man, Clown and Dancer" oil 10 x 8" On loan from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine A 28. "Bathers in a Cove" oil 20 27% from " On Xloan Pennsylvania State University, Museum 26. "La Rouge: Portrait of Miss Edith King" oil 28/z x 31/2" On loan from Lehigh University, Department of Exhibitions brary, Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 30. "Paris Omnibus" oil 10/4 x 13%6" On loan from Bucknell University, Ellen Clarke Bertrand Li- ' 32. "Clown" oil 9 x 7>/z" On loan from Vassar College Art Callery, Poughkeep brary, Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. and Collection, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. 12 of New York. �EVERETT SHINN " ■ -if-i--j-. -d r-,- 'ection. (1876-1953 Born in Woodstown, New Jersey) Everett Shinn, the youngest of The Eight, had the most varied career. In addition to painting and illustration, Shinn, at one time or another, was involved in set design, motion picture art direction and play writing. Shinn met the other Philadelphia painters at the Pennsyl­ vania Academy, which he attended while working as an il­ lustrator for the Philadelphia Press. His ambition, upon mi­ grating to New York City, was to establish himself as a fashionable illustrator for the better magazines and publish­ ing houses. His pastel of the Metropolitan Opera House in a snowstorm, rendered overnight to meet the deadline for landing a job with Harper's Weekly, helped to launch him toward the fulfillment of his ambition. Unlike the other AshCan painters, Shinn gravitated to the fashionable sections of town rather than the humbler ones. tia State University, Museum of isylvania. His interest in the theater was stirred by his trip to Paris in 1901, and the pictures he showed with The Eight included stage scenes. Partly because of this interest, he was particu­ larly drawn to the art of Degas. He also shared with Degas a love for pastel as a medium, two examples of which appear in the present show. iversity, Ellen Clarke Bertrand Livania. 31. "Strong Man, Clown and Dancer" oil 10 x 8" On loan from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. liversity, Ellen Clarke Bertrand LiIvania. 32. "Clown" oil 9 x 71/2" On loan from Vassar College Art Gallery, Poughkeepsie, New York. 34. "Snowstorm, Washington Square" pastel 25 Vz x 19V2" On loan from a private collection. 33. "The Green Ballet, 1943" oil 19% x 30" On loan from The Westmoreland County Museum of Art, Greensburg, Pennsylvania. 35. "Startled Nude" pastel 15 x 14V1" On loan from a private collection. 13 �37. "Horace Traubel" JOHN SLOAN (1871-1951 Born in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania) oil 32 x 26" On loan from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Sloan was the "slow starter" of the Ash-Can group, ut one of its most durable successes. He continued to work as an artist/reporter for Philadelphia newspapers long after his journalist colleagues in The Eight had turned to painting. He was the last of them to move to New York, and the only one never to go to Europe. For a long time he received little attention as a painter, and sold his first painting only after 38. "Self Portrait" oil 24 x 20" On loan from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. he was past forty. His manner of painting was also slower than that of his Philadelphia friends. He had less facility with the quick study than men such as Luks and Glackens, and during his newspaper career concentrated on illustrations for the Sun­ day sections rather than attempting on-the-spot recordings of fast-breaking news. On the other hand his work took on an increasing structural solidity, and he gained early recogni­ tion as an illustrator with his art-nouveau drawings and his etchings for novels. 39. "Gloucester Harbor" oil 26 x 32" On loan from Syracuse University Art Collections, Syracuse, New York. When he began his career as a serious painter in New York, Sloan turned to the realities of the urban environment for inspiration. So candid and forceful was his work that several paintings submitted to an exhibition in 1906 were rejected for their "vulgarity." Sloan's deep attachment to the humbler elements of urban society aroused more than artistic interest in them, and he ran for the State Assembly in 1908 on the Socialist ticket, but was defeated. In 1912 he became art editor for the socialist magazine, The Masses. His social consciousness continued to influence his painting and illustration for several years, but after World War I, he turned more fully to formal problems, such as the study of the nude. Like his own mentor, Henri, Sloan became an in­ fluential teacher, whose students included such later mas­ ters as Alexander Calder, Adolph Gottlieb, Barnett New­ man, and Reginald Marsh. 40. "Dolly Reading" oil 20 x 24" On loan from a private collection. 36. "Balancing Rock, Gloucester Harbor" oil 26Vz x 32 Vz" On loan from Lehigh University, Department of Exhibitions and Collection, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. 14 �idemy of the Fine Arts, ademy of the Fine Arts, ,rt Collections, Syracuse, Ir" Department of Exhibitions Ifoania. �Director J. PHILIP RICHARDS Coordinator CARA BERRYMAN Advisory Commission MR. ROBERT CAPIN MRS. STANLEY DAVIES MRS. CHARLES EPSTEIN MR. RICHARD FULLER DR. THOMAS KELLY MRS. ALLAN KLUGER MR. MICHAEL KOLESAR mrs. john McDonald MR. ALBERT MARGOLIES MR. ANDREW SORDONI, III DR. WILLIAM STERLING WILKES COLLEGE SORDONI ART GALLERY WILKES-BARRE, PENNSYLVANIA 18766 16 �llliffl 100D183318 MILKES COLLEGE LIBRARY �� Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Sordoni Art Gallery Exhibition Programs, 1973-present Description An account of the resource Exhibition programs created by the Sordoni Art Gallery from 1973 to the present. Digitized by Wilkes University Archives interns, Zachary Mendoza and Sophia Kruspha. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource The Sordoni Art Gallery Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Wilkes University Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Sordoni Art Gallery Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1973-present Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Wilkes University retains copyright of these exhibition programs. Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Exhibition programs, flyers, and calendars. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1979 March 9 - April 1 An Exhibition of paintings by The Eight Subject The topic of the resource Exhibition program Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Sordoni Art Gallery Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Sordoni Art Gallery; Wilkes University Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1979 March 9 - April 1 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Type The nature or genre of the resource Exhibition Book https://omeka.wilkes.edu/omeka/files/original/bfb32e94c237890f6135edd7f59012d7.pdf c5ddf8940566b2aeda263dccda889514 PDF Text Text ! Ir gARCHIVES I SQR.D GA ! 2269.2 N43C6 I 1999 �THE COLLECTOR AS BOOKBINDER The Piscatorial Bindings of S. A. Neff, Jr. �ITINERARY Cleveland Museum of Natural History Cleveland, Ohio January 9 through March 14, 1999 THECOLLECTC The Piscatorial Bi: Sordoni Art Gallery Wilkes University Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania June 13 through August 15,1999 Rochester Institute of Technology, Cary Collection Rochester, New York October 7 through December 17, 1999 American Museum of Natural Flistory New York, New York April 7 through July 2, 2000 The American Museum of Fly Fishing Manchester, Vermont July 9 through September 29, 2000 Essays by Elisabeth R. Agro Stanley 1 Grand Binder’s Statement, Catak S A. Neff, Jr. New York State Museum Albany, New York October 6 through December 10, 2000 Sordoni Art Caller. • Wilkes I. �THE COLLECTOR AS BOOKBINDER The Piscatorial Bindings of S. A. Neff, Jr. Essays by Elisabeth R. Agro Stanley I Grand Binder's Statement, Catalogue Entries, and Glossary by S. A. Neff, Jr. E.S. FARLEY LIBRARY WILKES UNIVERSITY WILKES-BARRE, PA Sordoni Art Gallery • Wilkes University • Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania �6-A .• -L. N L/ 3 *_ BINDER'S STATEMEN T S. A. Neft Ir I ci q Copyright © 1999 Sordoni Art Gallery, Wilkes University All rights reserved 1700 copies were printed by Becotte & Gershwin Catalogue design: John Beck Photography: Jeff Cornelia Typeface: Palatine ISBN 0-94294S-14-X Front Cover: A Treasury of Reels, Vol. I (Front) Back Cover: A Treasury of Reels, Vol. I (Back) <11 cwkk in the exhibition was produced over a tv period beginning in ll»si. Both the exhibition am logue have been arranged in chronological order viewer to •.*■* the development ot the concept- and the ti the work has been created for mv per-onal angling hbrar it is the culmination ol one angler’s passion tor fishing I; flv. As will be clear to the viewer, m.inv ot the sets contai beyond the written word In fact, ome ot the set- bvioni miniature mil: <-uin that attests to and supports the w ritti Included in the various sets are photograph ot angling < actual fishing flies and the materials used for dressing th angling arid.ids, and paraphernalia. 1 was introdui ed to bookbinding in mv mid-forties, an beginning I km w this < rilt would be .< >me one ■ >f th* mo directions in my life Asm1, kill- developed I r* aiized ft twenty-five year's experience m graphic design in.id'.ert trained me to be a bookbinder 1.a rived into the w* rid ol with a well-dec eloped as-th, tic sen.-* a kec-nlv h i.-.d he coordination, a sense ot proportion, and patience. A sense of history prompted me to look cl* sely at the t developed bv bookbinders of past centuries These book! bookmakers have built a very -el .1 n <u:.dation. and I h.: behooved to continue to build O'- that inheritance 1 have re-.pect for the rules of that rich tradition t*< attempt to br to negate them altogether. My direct! as a b vkb.nder i creative as possible while firmly remaining witSn th ■ p* �BINDER'S STATEMENT S. A. Neff, Jr. in the exhibition was produced over a twelve-year period beginning in 1986. Both the exhibition and the cata­ logue have been arranged in chronological order to enable the viewer to see the development of the concepts and the techniques. All the work has been created for my personal angling library. In a sense, it is the culmination of one angler's passion for fishing for trout with a fly. As nnll be clear to the viewer, many of the sets contain material far beyond the written word. In fact, some of the sets become a kind of miniature museum that attests to and supports the written word. Included in the various sets are photographs of angling environments, actual fishing flies and the materials used for dressing them, letters, angling artifacts, and paraphernalia. I was introduced to bookbinding in my mid-forties, and from the beginning I knew this craft would become one of the most significant directions in my life. As my skills developed, I realized that my twenty-five year's experience in graphic design inadvertently had trained me to be a bookbinder. I arrived into the world of bookbinding with a well-developed aesthetic sense, a keenly honed hand-to-eye coordination, a sense of proportion, and patience. A sense of history7 prompted me to look closely at the traditions developed by bookbinders of past centuries. These bookbinders and bookmakers have built a very solid foundation, and I have always felt behooved to continue to build on that inheritance. I have far too much respect for the rules of that rich tradition to attempt to break them, or to negate them altogether. My direction as a bookbinder is to be as creative as possible, while firmly remaining within the perimeters of he work these traditions. Some people think of my work as design binding, but I consider it fine binding because I have chosen to follow the tradi­ tions set by past generations of bookbinders. Almost from the start of my career, I have been intrigued with the concept of creating containers to house bindings and other volumes. Many of the containers take the form of a drop-back box covered with goatskin. All are decorated to various degrees, and this decoration generally sets a theme for the housed volumes. In juxtaposition with experimenting with container forms, I have continued to explore techniques for decorating them. Although a detailed description of techniques evolved for the decoration of the containers and bindings is inappropriate in a catalogue of this nature, some bookbinders and viewers may be interested in a brief description. In the late 1980s I began working with Japanese dyed paper and gilt paper to create decorative panels used on covers as well as doublures (decoration on the inside of the cover). As this method was refined, the panels became more complex; and some comprised hundreds of shapes. The process is begun by making a detailed drawing on tracing paper. Appropriate colors are then selected from a chart of dyed paper swatches. Next the images in the drawing are traced onto the dyed papers and cut out. When all the shapes have been cut out, they are glued to a piece of gilt paper then put under a light weight to ensure that they dry evenly. Later, each shape is carefully cut out, allowing a border of 1 /16". When all the shapes have been prepared, they are glued in position on a piece of bristol board, commencing with the sky and finishing with the foreground. The process is not unlike assem- j J -'••’iJjQ' 5 �bling a puzzle. When the panel is completed, it is trimmed to size and glued into a slightly depressed area in the goatskin cover or doublure. As I continued to become familiar with working in goatskin, I began to explore the possibilities of using it for decoration. The first experi­ ments were done with flat on-lays (thinly pared goatskin pasted onto the binding) with blind-tooled edges. Then I worked with raised on­ lays (thinly pared goatskin glued onto four-ply Bristol board shapes). When working with either type of on-lay (separately or in conjunc­ tion) I expanded the decoration with either blind or gilt tooling. At first I executed the tooling with conventional tools, then I learned of the flexibility of the Ascona tool, a specially cut brass tool used with stiff paper templates as guides. This method allows a binder to tool curvilinear lines more fluid than those made with conventional tools. By working with these tools and multiple, interlocking templates, I blind-tooled complex designs onto goatskin covers. Sometimes the blind-tooled lines do not give enough definition to the design, but I resolve this problem by gluing very narrow strips of goatskin, of a contrasting color, into the linear depressions. This allows me to draw with leather. One experiment leads to another, and sometimes another technique of decoration emerges within a relatively short period. Rarely have 1 set out to create something different. Rather, I follow a direction dictated by the content of the text, the materials, and the tools. At the risk of sounding self-serving, I must say that although my containers and bindings may appear to be nearly flawless, the proce­ dure has never been flawless. There have been occasions when I have needed to repeat a process several times before achieving a satisfac­ tory result. Bookbinding is an old-world craft that requires an essen­ tial discipline and devotion. In this computer age it is almost an anomaly to work patiently with one's hands, using simple tools. S. A. NEFF, JR., ANGLING ARTISAN Caught by Trout, Piscatorial Books, a Elisabeth R. Agro Carnegie Museum of Art of S. A. Neff, Jr., piscatorial bookbinder, is alluring for those who appreciate masterh design, high quality binding, and (perhaps) trout. At a mere glimpse of his work, the viewei mesmerized—transfixed by each binding's exacting beauty. Neff literally ensnares (or should I say hooks and reel?? > his viewer into 1 world, assembled in goatskin and Japanese paper The essence or 5. Neff, Jr., consists of three inseparable and integral elements: he is a devout angler, a collector of angling books and a piscatorial fine binde: The piscatorial bindings of S. A. Neff. Jr. illustrate not onlv his passion for angling for tn>ut and collecting books on anglinu but al* his work as a fine binder for his personal collection. Neff's fane . ~ fly-tying and angling for trout began when he w as fifteen.: in the tor five years since then, he has waded trout rivers throughout the L nit States, Ireland England and Central Europe Because he warwd .. know the trout ana its environment Neff pecan to collect old anglir books: with his ;:r*. purchase, at the age cf-twvnri he embarked or, education in aquatic entomology, the devising and dressing of flies the hand-c: at ting of fly rods, anti the under# ending *. UStorv .> \ f c id Iv . w c . ttne caught upio, ..*.-: ■ : *. ■ ■- gnlti.-t :ci c*b.’>'ks He eo tv Priisburgc t*ib!io.<'.,<*- ot ;:w-ctwOec" omtains two th w-.-rc J. csident tortwo. r1•; x* ' ■ . ■ v toe ' :.! ' <? : :* -. .me. ’> . c..<. he work �definition to the design, but I irrow strips of goatskin, of a ssions. This allows me to draw ,d sometimes another technique ely short period. Rarely have I lather, I follow a direction materials, and the tools. I must say that although my o be nearly’ flawless, the procejve been occasions when I have es before achieving a satisfac■ld craft that requires an essentnputer age it is almost an hands, using simple tools. S. A. NEFF, JR., ANGLING ARTISAN Caught by Trout, Piscatorial Books, and Fine Binding Elisabeth R. Agro Carnegie Museum of Art of S. A. Neff. Jr., piscatorial bookbinder, is alluring for those who appreciate masterly design, high quality binding, and (perhaps) trout At a mere glimpse of his work, the viewer is mesmerized—transfixed by each binding's exacting beauty. Neff I literally ensnares (or should I say hooks and reels?) his viewer into his world, assembled in goatskin and Japanese paper. The essence of S. A. Neff. Jr., consists of three inseparable and integral elements: he is a devout angler, a collector of angling books, and a piscatorial fine binder. The piscatorial bindings of S. A. Neff, Jr. illustrate not only his passion for angling for trout and collecting books on angling but also his work as a fine binder for his personal collection. Neff's fancy for fly-tyring and angling for trout began when he was fifteen; in the fortyfive years since then, he has traded trout rivers throughout the United States, Ireland, England, and Central Europe. Because he wanted to know the trout and its environment, Neff began to collect old angling books: with his first purchase, at the age of twenty, he embarked on an education in aquatic entomology, the devising and dressing of flies, the hand-crafting of fly rods, and the understanding of piscatorial history. As Neff's collection of old angling books grew, he became caught up in their history' and significance as books. He joined the Pittsburgh Bibliophiles, of which he was a member for seventeen •. ears and president for two. His library' now contains two thousand volumes on fish and fishing, focusing on books prior to the twentieth he work century, with some dating as far back as 1600. This collecting enthusi­ asm propelled him to the next logical step: the care and restoration of his fine collection. In 1982—in order to make small repairs on some of the books in his growing collection—Neff took a few simple workshops on binding methods in the Pittsburgh area. Reflecting on his late start as a book­ binder, Neff often refers to T. J. Cobden-Sanderson (1840-1922), known as the Father of Modern Bookbinding, who also began his career as a bookbinder at middle age. Realizing that he would not have enough time to learn all the various methods and styles of binding, and being an autodidact by nature, Neff struck out on his own, teaching himself procedures that would be most applicable to the care and repair of his personal library. Neff soon realized that his twenty-five years as a graphic designer and illustrator, coupled with his long experience as an angler, provided him with the skills and design sensibility needed to become a bookbinder: "My development of hand-to-eye coordination during my longtime activities as a de­ signer and flytier inadvertently trained me in bookbinding." Since 1982, Neff has continually added new methods, techniques, and materials to his bookbinding repertoire. Initially, he worked in quarter- and half-leather, then in full leather with simple gilt-stamped designs (the stamping dies are of his own design). After taking a vellum workshop in 1985, he began creating half- and full-vellum *7 �J bindings. With this new skill, Neff created his first multiple set of bindings and boxes for .4 Book ofSmall Flies (Figures 1-4). This unique edition, originallv a two-volume set, comprises four volumes bound in full vellum over raised foundations with marbled paper panels and on-lavs of goatskin. Neff created two additional volumes, which include objects bevond the text such as materials used in making flies, and photographs taken bv Neff based on the text of the book. This set was the first four-volume set of angling books to contain a related grouping of all these piscatorial materials. A Book of Small Flies marks the beginning of Neff's serious commitment to bookbinding: it was the first work Neff exhibited nationally and was selected for inclusion at the juried Guild of Book Workers' 1986 national exhibition. In 1988, Neff began to experiment with Japanese dyed paper to create decorative panels, using it in conjunction with Japanese gilt paper to provide a linear definition between the shapes. He used this technique on a set of two bindings in a box, A Modern Dry-Fly Code, second edition, and In the Ring ofthe Rise, both by' Vincent C. Marinaro, published in 1970 and 1976 respectively (Figures 6 & 7). The two volumes are found within a drop-back box portraying the Cumberland Valley, which provides the viewer with a glimpse of what is contained inside. The image found on the decorative panels of each binding represents the subject of that volume. A Modern Dry-Fly Code investigates the meth­ ods of flv fishing on the Letort Spring Run in the Cumberland Valley in Pennsylvania. Neff portrays this small river, including an image of the predominant variety of mayfly, the Ephemerella dorothea (Figure 7). He depicts the stream in detail on the panels for In the Ring of the Rise, which throroughty examines the feeding habits of the Letort trout. Neff includes an illustration of a trout that has just risen to the surface for a mayfly, resulting in a rise-form, or "ring of the rise" (Figure 7). The viewer is first struck by the image of the Cumberland Valley on the box. Neff says, "The viewer moves into the valley when looking at the covers of the Code, and finally to the river's surface with the covers of the Ring." This application of pictorial panels to foretell the contents of a box and bindings was the beginning of a style formula for Neff. Neff further developed this innovative pictorial panel technique. The application of panel decoration in combination with box sets 8 • The Collector c* Bookbinder containing two or more volumes imparts a particular expression to Neff's work. He says, "I have always been interested in creating sets of books, rather than simply putting a cover, albeit a decorative one, on a book." Neff calls these sets "containers" because they usually hold items such as actual fishing flies, photographs, letters, and reels in addition to the text of a book or essay. As an observer of Neff's work, I am more inclined to call these box sets "environments." Each panel draws the viewer into the subject explored within a box and volume. The specific angling materials placed within each box further the experience of the subject. Giving the subject matter of each book careful consideration, Neff essentially documents the specific angling environment on the panels of the box set and the bindings it contains. The three-volume set Miniature Nymphs: A Chapterfrom "The Masters on the Nymph" (1989) exemplifies this angling environment (Figures 8-12). This set contains text, actual trout flies dressed by Neff and materials for making them, manuscript, photographs used in the text, and correspondence with the publisher. On the box are scenes of limestone and freestone rivers, two of the earth's three river types. The highly detailed images of a brown trout in a limestone river, rainbow trout in a freestone river, and nymphs on the bottom of the rivers appear individually on the bindings of each volume. The pictorial panels found on this set inform the viewer of the contents of each volume. In 1990, Neff began experimenting with full goatskin bindings over raised foundations, flat on-lays, raised on-lays, and blind tooling. Neff integrated these new techniques with his decorative panels and boxed-set formula. Catskill Rivers, written by Austin M. Francis (1983), was bound in 1991 and is a product of this integration (Figures 15-18). The covers on the box and volume are incredibly fine. Neff describes the design as follows: The panel on the front cover depicts the trout of the Catskill rivers; the brook trout (leaping downward) declined at the end of the nineteenth century, to be replaced by the brown trout (moving upward). The vivid colors of the panel are in direct contrast with the subtleties of the binding. The dark green on-lays quietly set the scene on the book's cover for the three bands of bright blue raised on-lay the Catskil! rivers. . mbolizin, Revealing the connection between the box and the binding, states, "There is no apparent relationship between the box cot binding [at first glance] until the book is opened to reveal the doublure portraying a scene on one of the rivers." This Catski environment is made whole by a second river scene, which a; the back doublure, and aquatic insects, which are found in th, ground of each panel. A set consisting of two volumes housed in an inner and ou( made for Rodolphe L. Coignev's Izank Walton: .4 Nor Btbliogn 1653-19S7 (1989) represents Neff's interest in creating twentis century designs based on seventeenth- and eighteenth-centur designs (Figures 23-28). "As a twentieth-centurv binder and I designer, I can immerse myself in period design, but to attem produce a similar design would simply be making a facsimile actually a personal aesthetic effort," states Neff. Therefore, he rated these bindings with a twentieth-centurv version of a sevt centurv panel design. Of particular note in this container are the interior of the ot and the cover of the inner box, which form a triptych (Figure When the viewer opens the box, he or she finds a scene depic Charles Cotton's Fishing House, Piscaforibus sacrum, on the Ri Dove in England, which ran through Cotton's estate. An angl and close friend of Walton, Cotton memorialized their friends the cypher "IWCC" inscribed on the keystone above the door Piscatoribus sacrum. Neff uses this cypher as a decorative elem the box and binding, thus linking them to Walton, Cotton, Pis sacrum, and the River Dove. Two aquatic insects found on the long before the seventeenth century' are also in full view in th: container. In this boxed set, Neff creates a twentieth-century ’ based on a seventeenth-century binding style, effectively juxt. two periods. He accomplishes this by binding both volumes i seventeenth-century style, including a doublure panel depict! angler of that period and another portraying a modern angler �rts a particular expression to ?een interested in creating sets cover, albeit a decorative one, liners" because they usually photographs, letters, and reels ly. As an observer of Neff's box sets "environments." Each :t explored within a box and ; placed within each box further re subject matter of each book documents the specific angling set and the bindings it contains. ’hs: A Chapterfrom "The Masters on ng environment (Figures 8-12). ; dressed by Neff and materials raphs used in the text, and n the box are scenes of limestone 5 three river types. The highly limestone river, rainbow trout in ?ottom of the rivers appear nlume. The pictorial panels : the contents of each volume, with full goatskin bindings over 1 on-lays, and blind tooling. Neff his decorative panels and tten by Austin M. Francis (1983), f this integration (Figures 15—18). ! incrediblv fine. Neff describes nets the trout of the Catskill iownward) declined at the > be replaced by the brown id colors of the panel are in s of the binding. The dark ne on the book's cover for the three bands of bright blue raised on-lays symbolizing the Catskill rivers. Revealing the connection between the box and the binding, Neff states, "There is no apparent relationship between the box cover and binding [at first glance] until the book is opened to reveal the front doublure portraying a scene on one of the rivers." This Catskill river environment is made whole by a second river scene, which appears on the back doublure, and aquatic insects, which are found in the fore­ ground of each panel. A set consisting of two volumes housed in an inner and outer box made for Rodolphe L. Coigney's Izaak Walton: A New Bibliography 1653-1987 (1989) represents Neff's interest in creating twentieth­ century designs based on seventeenth- and eighteenth-century panel designs (Figures 23-28). "As a twentieth-century binder and binding designer, I can immerse myself in period design, but to attempt to produce a similar design would simply be making a facsimile, and not actually a personal aesthetic effort," states Neff. Therefore, he deco­ rated these bindings with a twentieth-century version of a seventeenth­ century panel design. Of particular note in this container are the interior of the outer box and the cover of the inner box, which form a triptych (Figure 24). When the viewer opens the box, he or she finds a scene depicting Charles Cotton's Fishing House, Piscatoribus sacrum, on the River Dove in England, which ran through Cotton's estate. An angler, poet, and close friend of Walton, Cotton memorialized their friendship in the cypher "IWCC" inscribed on the keystone above the door to Piscatoribus sacrum. Neff uses this cypher as a decorative element on the box and binding, thus linking them to Walton, Cotton, Piscatoribus sacrum, and the River Dove. Two aquatic insects found on the river long before the seventeenth century are also in full view in this container. In this boxed set, Neff creates a twentieth-century version based on a seventeenth-century binding style, effectively juxtaposing two periods. He accomplishes this by binding both volumes in a seventeenth-century style, including a doublure panel depicting an angler of that period and another portraying a modern angler in the same setting, using the IWCC cypher as a decorative motif, and including contemporary photography of what he calls "the relatively unspoiled beauty" of Dove Dale and the river. Neff designed this set to be experienced in stages, which he feels makes it "more complex and interesting than a simple binding." The panel decorations, together with the binding techniques described here, aid Neff in achieving his goal of developing a sense of move­ ment through space and history within his containers. Since 1992, Neff has continued to excel at binding and creating pictorial panels. His recent bindings and containers include A Treasury of Reels (1995, Figures 36-40), The Angling Letters of S. A. Neff, ]r. and J. S. Hewitson (1997, Figures 41-44), and Angling in Hibernia (1998, Figures 45-49). A Treasury of Reels is a two-volume set that contains text and actual nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century fly reels. These are housed in a drop-back box, which is embellished by designs that mimic ten actual reel designs. The volumes are contained in a chest with a bas-relief of a brook trout on the top. Angling Letters is a grouping of correspondence, dating back to 1965, between Neff and Hewitson. Neff has organized each decade in a drop-back box. Also included are photographs Neff took to illustrate a point from one letter for each year of the correspondence. Angling in Hibernia is an autobiographical work of Neff's experiences of angling in Ireland. This impressive five-volume set contains text, related photographs, flies tied by Neff, materials used for making Irish trout flies, and a life box containing piscatorial objects. These works represent Neff's persistence in striving to perfect his skills as a binder and binding designer. The combination of Neff as artist, angler, collector, and binder—coupled with his vivacity and dedication—result in the achievement of high quality in his work. Although the combination of talents and interests Neff exhibits would seem to be unique, his work can be placed within a historical framework. Thomas Gosden (1780-1840) should easily come to mind for bibliophiles who collect sporting books. Gosden described himself as a bookbinder, publisher, and printseller. Like Neff, he was an outdoor enthusiast and a lover of books who brought his enthusiasm for angling to his work. Gosden is best known as a binder whose The Piscatorial Bindings of S. A. Neff, Jr. • 9 �angling books are stamped with small piscatorial and emblematic designs. In 1819, he published T. P. Lathey's poem The Angler, which he embellished with a full-length portrait of himself outfitted with a fishing rod and net as a frontispiece. In this engraving, Gosden signals the depth of his knowledge of angling and angling literature by including the IWCC cypher of Walton and Cotton on the plinth upon which he is leaning. The portrait verifies William Loring Andrews's description of Gosden in An English XIX Century Sportsman, Bibliopole and Binder ofAngling Books (1906) as "a true disciple of Izaak Walton." As a fly-fisherman of trout, a book collector, and a binder, Neff has continued in the tradition of Gosden as a twentieth-century "sporting bookbinder" and enthusiast. Since Gosden, many' others have produced distinctive angling books. Some angling authors—such as William Blacker (1814-1856), W. H. Aldam (active mid-nineteenth century), Preston Jennings (18931962), and Charles Phair (1875-1943)—took their published works a step further by incorporating flies and fly-tying materials into their texts. Blacker and Aldam, both British, published notable works in 10 • The Collector as Bookbinder 1842 and 1843 and 1876. They were followed by the Americans Jennings and Phair in 1935 and 1937 respectively. Although these books were deluxe editions, they were commercial in nature. In the twentieth century, firms such as Robert Riviere & Son and Sangorski & Sutcliffe were known to have produced magnificent bindings, but their binders were usually not anglers. Neff has followed in the tradition of Blacker, Aldam, Jennings, and Phair by incorporating angling materials into his angling "environments." As a collector and binder, Neff can be placed in a special category of twentieth-century collectors of angling books who execute fine bindings for their personal collections. The depth of his knowledge of angling and of the content of each book in his library—along with his design expertise—brings the quality of his work to a high level. Each binding reflects his base of knowledge; each design is unique and particular to the subject of the book. His pictorial bindings are excep­ tional, superbly executed, and innovative. S. A. Neff, Jr., guides the viewer through an exploration of the history' of angling for trout. His work becomes a lens into this fascinating and special world. ANGLING BOUND The Bindings of S. A. Neff, Jr. Stanley I Grand Wilkes University he "essence" of S. A. Neff, Jr., writes Elisabeth Agro of three inseparable and integral elements: being a angler, a collector of angling books, and a piscatori binder." In the remainder of her essay for this catalogue sh Neff's development as a fine binder and locates him withir historical context of artist-binders of angling literature. Nel statement likewise focuses on binding techniques and inne This essay, on the other hand, looks at the images that Netf and their relationship to the books they adorn. It is concerr fore, with iconography ("picture writing"), angling writing fishing for trout, the center link in Agro's tripartite chain. In his binder's statement, Neff observes that he has an "t sense, a keenly honed hand-to-eye coordination, a sense of and patience" along with a well-developed "sense of histoi are precisely the qualities one associates with fly fishing. Ti of the beautifully streamlined and colored trout in pure flo waters, by means most graceful and refined, is built on aes values. Moreover, it is a pursuit rich in history’. The traditio catching fish on a hook decorated with bits of feather and f ancient (Figure 12), as is the practice of writing about it. As the third century, we find an unequivocal description of fly Claudius /Elianus’s De Animalium Nalura: "The fishermen i wool around their hooks and fasten to the wool two feathe grow under a cock's wattle and which are the colour of dar After TElianus, no true angling literature is to be found unti publication of The Treatyse of Fysshynge wyth an Angle (publi �re followed by the Americans >37 respectively. Although these were commercial in nature. In the tobert Riviere & Son and Sangorski & duced magnificent bindings, but glers. Neff has followed in the ngs, and Phair by incorporating ■ "environments.'' can be placed in a special category of gling books who execute fine ions. The depth of his knowledge of i book in his library’—along with his ity of his work to a high level. Each edge; each design is unique and ik. His pictorial bindings are exceplovative. S. A. Neff. Jr., guides the the history of angling for trout. His zinating and special world. ANGLING BOUND The Bindings of S. A. Neff, Jr. Stanley I Grand Wilkes University he "essence" of S. A. Neff, Jr., writes Elisabeth Agro, "consists of three inseparable and integral elements: being a devout angler, a collector of angling books, and a piscatorial fine binder." In the remainder of her essay for this catalogue she traces Neff's development as a fine binder and locates him within the historical context of artist-binders of angling literature. Neff's own statement likewise focuses on binding techniques and innovations. This essay, on the other hand, looks at the images that Neff has created and their relationship to the books they adorn. It is concerned, there­ fore. with iconography ("picture writing"), angling writing, and fly fishing for trout, the center link in Agro's tripartite chain. In his binder's statement, Neff observes that he has an "aesthetic sense, a keenly honed hand-to-eye coordination, a sense of proportion, and patience" along with a well-developed "sense of history." These are precisely the qualities one associates with fly fishing. The pursuit of the beautifully streamlined and colored trout in pure flowing waters, by means most graceful and refined, is built on aesthetic values. Moreover, it is a pursuit rich in history. The tradition of catching fish cn a hook decorated with bits of feather and fur is ancient (Figure 12), as is the practice of writing about it. As early as the third century we find an unequivocal description of fly fishing in Claudius /Elianus's De Animalium Natura: "The fishermen wind red wool around their hooks and fasten to the wool two feathers that grow under a cock's wattle and which are the colour of dark wax."1 After /Elianus, no true angling literature is to be found until the publication of The Treatyse ofFysshynge anyth an Angle (published in 1496 but written some seventy-five years earlier), which most attribute to Dame Juliana Berners. Its importance, as John McDonald notes, is that since it "has no known antecedent in fishing history and asserts for the first time distinctive sporting attitudes toward fishing, it serves as the point of origin of modem angling."2 Earlier writings on fishing had treated the subject as a profession or occupation rather than a sport. More than simply a collection of recipes and tactics, "what is noteworthy is that Dame Juliana sets the cheerful and pious tone which is so characteristic of English books on angling."’ The 1496 printing of Dame Juliana's treatise included a woodcut famous in angling circles, a copy of which Neff has inlaid on the cover of the Catalogue of the Library of Thomas Westwood, Esq. (Figure 13). Here we see a fifteenth-century angler, who, to judge from his costume, is a member of the merchant class—a gentleman but not an aristocrat. Bending, he reaches out toward the taut line while simultaneously lifting a fish from the stream. He wields a two-piece rod to which is attached a tapered horsehair line (made by twisting together hairs from the tail of a white horse) and a cork float or bobber. The fish dangling from the end of his line is about to be swung ashore, des­ tined to join two others swimming in a short wooden barrel. If our angler has followed Dame Juliana's advice, the lower section of his rod or "rodde" is made of hazel, willow, or aspen; and the flexible tip section, a yard in length, of blackthorn, crabtree, medlar, or juniper. During the century and a half between the publication of Dame Juliana's Treatyse and the first edition of Izaac Walton's The Coinpleat Angler (1653), only a handful of new angling books appeared. One of 11 �► these, The Arte of Angling (1577), author unknown, was familiar to Walton, who "borrowed" numerous sections without attribution or credit. Having gone through five editions in Walton's lifetime and well over four hundred to date, The Coinpleat Angler is not only one of the most influential books in angling literature but also one of the most widely published books in the English language (Figures 14, 32, & 33). Keeping track of all the editions has become a cottage industry: in the nineteenth century, Thomas Westwood, the piscatorial bibliophile­ collector mentioned above, along with Thomas Satchell, published a bibliography entitled The Chronicle of the Coinpleat Angler (1864), which was followed, most notably, by Peter Oliver's A Nero Chronicle of the Coinpleat Angler (1936), Bernard S. Home's The Complete Angler 1653-1967 (1970), and Rodolphe L. Coigney's Izaak Walton: A New Bibliography (1970), 1653-1987 (1989, Figures 23-28). Until the present century, the appeal of Walton's Angler has re­ mained relatively constant—excepting only a period of obscuration between the publication of the fifth edition and his rediscovery by Moses Browne—because, as Charles Lamb observed in 1796, "It breathes the very spirit of innocence, purity and simplicity of heart.... it would sweeten a man's temper at any time to read it."4 Written in the form of a discourse between Piscator, Venator [Viator or "Way­ farer" in the first edition; Venator in all subsequent editions], and Auceps, the Angler is part of a pastoral literary tradition that includes Theocritus's Idylls, Virgil's Eclogues, and in angling literature, John Dennys's Secrets ofAngling (1613). The Angler begins with a chance encounter of three sportsmen who commence a friendly exchange on the relative merits of their respective pastimes (fishing, hunting, falconry). Following a medieval formula (utilized by Dame Juliana as well) of argument followed by instruction, a conversion occurs in the course of their discussions when Venator requests instruction in the art of angling and Piscator agrees to be his Master. The Angler's charm is enhanced by a liberal sprinkling of poems, songs, ditties, and rhymes amid an exposition on the characteristics of a wide variety of fish, their habits and preferences, and tecliniques for ensuring their capture. Walton lived through a period of civil unrest, an interregnum when Cromwell headed England. A Royalist, Walton found a respite from 12 • The Collector as Bookbinder the political divisiveness of the time in pastoral pursuits. The most famous of his pastoral retreats is Piscatoribus sacrum, a fishing house built by his friend Charles Cotton in 1674 along the banks of the River Dove in Derbyshire, which Neff represents on the inside panels of the outer box containing Coigney's Walton (Figure 24). Cotton memorialized his friendship with Walton by linking together their initials to form a cypher (Figures 14 & 23), which he had carved above the fishing house entrance. This cypher also appears at the beginning of Part Two ot the fifth edition of the Angler (1676) in which Cotton's own contribution, a supplemental manual entitled Being Instructions How to Angle in Trout or Grayling in a Clear Stream, appeared for the first time. Unlike Walton, Cotton concentrated on two fish known for their willingness to take a fly; he is consequently known as the "father of fly fishing." 1 he "mother of fly fishing," of course, is Dame Juliana, whose classic patterns for a dozen artificial flies reigned supreme for two centuries. On the back doublure of the binding for Coigney's Bibliography (Figure 27), Neff depicts a seventeenth-century angler catching a carp, a much maligned fish today, but one that Walton called the "queen of rivers."’ Reflecting Walton's observation that one must have "a very large measure of patience ... to fish for a river Carp," Neff has thought­ fully provided his angler with a three-legged stool." Ihe seventeenth­ century angler holds a rod not much changed from the time of Dame Juliana. The absence of a reel is expected since they were reserved primarily for salmon fishing (a fish that Walton claims, erroneously, will "not usually [bite] at a fly, but more usually at a worm").' Walton does note, however, that salmon fishers use a rod and reel combination. a ring of wire on the top of their rod, through which the line may run to as great a length as is needful, when he [the fish] is hooked. And to that end, some use a wheel about the middle of their rod, or near their hand."’ In the century after the death of Walton, the reel became an increas­ ingly common sight on British streams. Along with other technical innovations, there was a great advance in, and disbursement of, piscatorial knowledge. However, as Major John W. Hills wrote in A History of Fly Fishingfor Trout (1921), "When we leave them [Walton and the other seventeenth-century' writers] we leave the reign of the book, and come lo th it ot the manual typical example or ar, . .ghtei r.lh-century tr-ioi ■>! i i noteworthy exception is Cl'.irk < Bowik-■:'I ■■ 19-20). I bis volume, which first appeared in 1747 und Charles's father Richard, went through numerous edit sions, and revisions. Bowlki r is remembered tor hi;- di willingness to challenge received authorities (Berners, and original flv drvs-.ings based on his knowledge of ent, spirit ot the Enlightenment, Bowlker championed closi and scientific method over the existing, authoritative,. classical paradigm. By the end of the eighteenth if-ntui influence was preeminent: .is Arnold Gingriih <n i Cotton and Ronalds [see below], and the dawn of an e approach. Bowlker is the one main landmark." The nineteenth century v.itne- .ed not only a great V also an outpouring of titles devoted to angling, ini ludi British Angler (Figure 31). Combined with the contribu centuries, these and countless other books established as the undisputed font of da sic angling literature, loh has summarized the century's great piscatorial achieve were explored and promulgated in angling books as fc work of the nineteenth century was in the creation of e the decisive shift to upstream fishing, and the inventio which together formed the greatest revolution in flv-fi since the sport has been known.",T In this conne :tion, t innovations from the second half of the nineteenth ten of mention: floating fly lines of oiled silk and FI. S. Hal fine-wire hooks with eyes (previously all hooks were- " and snelled). Austin Francis views these developmentlarger societal change when he argues in Catskill Risers American Ely Fishing (Figures 15-18) that "Fly fishing ii England, grew out of the Industrial Revolution. And a industrialization trailed England'sby a good half centi coming of age as anglers." In the decades after the Civil War, the effects of indu immigration, and urbanization profoundly defined lhe �>f the time in pastoral pursuits. The most ■eats is Piscatoribus sacrum, a fishing house Cotton in 1674 along the banks of the River i Neff represents on the inside panels of the ey's Walton (Figure 24). Cotton memorialized i by linking together their initials to form a vhich he had carved above the fishing house appears at the beginning of Part Two of the 1676) in which Cotton's own contribution, a tied Being Instructions How to Angle for Trout appeared for the first time. Unlike Walton, ■o fish known for their willingness to take a m as the "father of fly fishing." The "mother ; Dame Juliana, whose classic patterns for a d supreme for two centuries. the binding for Coigney's Bibliography seventeenth-century’ angler catching a carp, v, but one that Walton called the "queen of s observation that one must have "a very' . to fish for a river Carp," Neff has thought'ith a three-legged stool.6 The seventeenthnot much changed from the time of Dame el is expected since they were reserved g (a fish that Walton claims, erroneously, fly, but more usually at a worm").' Walton non fishers use a rod and reel combination: f their rod, through which the line may' run edful, when he [the fish] is hooked. And to about the middle of their rod, or near their eath of Walton, the reel became an increas:ish streams. Along with other technical eat advance in, and disbursement of, vever, as Major John W. Hills wrote in A nt (1921), "When we leave them [Walton century writers] we leave the reign of the book, and come to that of the manual."’ The Gentleman Angler is a typical example of an eighteenth-century manual (Figures 21-22). A noteworthy exception is Charles Bowlker's The Art of Angling (Figures 19-20). This volume, which first appeared in 1747 under the name of Charles's father Richard, went through numerous editions, expan­ sions, and revisions. Bowlker is remembered for his direct approach, willingness to challenge received authorities (Berners, Cotton, et al.), and original fly dressings based on his knowledge of entomology. In the spirit of the Enlightenment, Bowlker championed close observation and scientific method over the existing, authoritative, and essentially classical paradigm. By the end of the eighteenth century, Bowlker's influence was preeminent: as Arnold Gingrich observes "Between Cotton and Ronalds [see below], and the dawn of an entomological approach, Bowlker is the one main landmark."10 The nineteenth century witnessed not only a great Walton vogue but also an outpouring of titles devoted to angling, including The Improved British Angler (Figure 31). Combined with the contributions of earlier centuries, these and countless other books established the British Isles as the undisputed font of classic angling literature. John McDonald has summarized the century's great piscatorial achievements, which were explored and promulgated in angling books as follows: "The real work of the nineteenth century was in the creation of entomologies, the decisive shift to upstream fishing, and the invention of the dry fly, which together formed the greatest revolution in fly-fishing history since the sport has been known."11 In this connection, two other innovations from the second half of the nineteenth century are worthy of mention: floating fly lines of oiled silk and H. S. Hall's invention of fine-wire hooks with eyes (previously all hooks were "blind," heavy, and snelled). Austin Francis views these developments as part of a larger societal change when he argues in Catskill Rivers: Birthplace of American Fly Fishing (Figures 15-18) that "Fly fishing in America, as in England, grew out of the Industrial Revolution. And as American industrialization trailed England's by a good half century, so did our coming of age as anglers."12 In the decades after the Civil War, the effects of industrialization, immigration, and urbanization profoundly defined the development of American fly fishing. As the great eastern cities, Boston, New York, and Philadelphia grew, railroad arteries spread out, linking these centers to the rest of the country and opening up new areas for commerce and recreation. By 1851, the Erie Railroad had already made the Delaware River a relatively easy destination. Twenty-one vears later, in 1872, the Ulster & Delaware and Ontario & Western rail lines each inaugurated rail service to the Catskills. Urban sportsmen no longer had to endure long, brutal, and unpleasant journeys by horse and stage to reach these pristine destinations. Such was the impact of the transportation revolution that by the end of the century great stretches of the Catskills were owned by the various captains of industry, their sporting sons, and fishing clubs like Salmo Fontinalis, established in 1873. Within a dozen years or so after the opening of the Catskills to "sports," as these fishermen were called, the fishery had declined precipitously due to a combination of factors including overharvesting of the native, eager brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis is actually a char, not a trout) and the diminution of habitat caused in part by logging which, among other things, raised water tempera­ tures, contributed to greater fluctuations in water levels, and added to pollution (Figure 37). Fish managers responded by introducing two new species to the Catskill streams: the brown trout (Salmo trutta), a European import often called the German brown, and the rainbow (Oncorhynchus mykiss, formerly Salmo gairdneri), from California (Figures 9 & 11). Neff commemorates the successful establishment of the European transplant and the decline of the brook trout on the box cover of Catskill Rivers (Figure 15). On the binding itself, he represents three Catskill rivers by means of undulating on-lays, flowing in tandem (Figure 16) (of the famous Catskill waters, three are rivers— the Beaverkill [Figures 17 & 18], Neversink, and Delaware—and three are creeks—the Willowemoc, Esopus, and Schoharie). The brown trout's successful introduction in the Catskills, and subsequently throughout the American continent, was due in part to its willingness to take a floating or dry fly (Figure 47) and its innate adaptability’ to a variety of waters. Prior to the nineteenth centurv, artificial flies were, with few exceptions, fished wet, that is, below the surface of the water. Animated by the current or the angler, most wet The Piscatorial Bindings of S. A Neff. Jr. • 13 �flies, such as the Childers salmon fly (Figure 35), act as attractors or lures. Anglers, however, had long observed that various insects on which trout fed spent a portion of their brief, ephemeral lives on top of the water. As knowledge of the various insects became more systematic and widespread, fostered by influential studies such as Alfred Ronalds's The Fly-Fisher's Entomology (1836), anglers in the British Isles began to develop dry flies specifically tied to correspond with, and imitate, particular stages in the life cycle of the mayfly. (As a general rule, subject to the usual qualifications, of all the various insects found on trout streams—caddis flies [Figure 17] which are called sedge flies in England [Figure 24], stoneflies, midges, terrestrials like ants or grasshoppers, et cetera—the mayfly is the most important.) Comprising approximately five hundred species, the mayfly is a complex, varied, and adaptable creature belonging to the order of Ephemeroptera. Like the butterfly or moth, the mayfly undergoes a series of striking metamorphoses during its life. After hatching from their eggs, most mayfly nymphs spend a year living and growing on the bottom of a stream. Depending on the type of water—moving or still, rocky or silty—the different species have developed specialized body types. Although all mayfly nymphs have heads; wing pads at the thorax, abdomen, and gills; legs; and tails (either tw'o or three part), the proportions of these components vary' depending on habitat. Neff has carefully observed and rendered these differences on the covers (Western limestone nymphs on the front and Catskill nymphs on the back) of his manuscript from The Masters on the Nymph (Figure 10). At the proper time, the nymph leaves its underwater home and drifts k or swims upward to the surface of the water where it shucks its ny'mphal shell. (A few species crawl onto rocks for this transforma­ tion.) Now called a dun (subimago), the newly emerged mayfly drifts dowmstream helplessly while its upright w’ings dry. In this vulnerable stage the dun provides a ready meal for rising trout and the inspira­ tion for the dry fly. Figure 47 shows a brown trout in an Irish stream about to take a green drake: the upwinged construction identifies the fly as a dun imitator (Ephemera danica, the green drake found in Ireland, differs somewhat from the North American green drake, Ephemera guttulata [Figure 18]). Other prominent parts include the head, body, 14 • The Collector as Bookbinder legs (simulated by hackle), and the tail. Neff clearly shows how surface tension keeps the fly afloat. Once its w ings dry, the dun tto a nearby tree or other resting spot, where it undergoes its final meta­ morphosis. Now known as a spinner (imago), the mayfly mates. its brief life ends, the female deposits her eggs back into the stream, and the cycle begins anew. (Since classical times, the Ephemeroptera—from the Greek meaning "over in a day"—have been a symbol of life and its stations, a conceit Neff revives in his boxes for the angling correspon­ dence of S. A. Neff, Jr., and J. S. Hewitson [Figures 41-44]). The spinners, their wings now down and transparent, fall back upon the water and again provide the hungry trout a meal. 1 he development of imitative dry flies, therefore, required an understanding of the life cycle of the mayfly, with an emphasis on the important postnymphal stages. The insights of Ronalds were pivotal to the development of the floating fly. Others expanded on this knowledge; and Frederic M. Halford in particular, the author of Floating Flics and How Io Dress Them (1886), was to have a tremendous impact on American fly fishing. Since the brown trout was nonindigenous, American anglers quite naturally turned to European sources for information on its habits. Here again England provided the lead; but the ecology of American streams was and is rather different from that of streams in the British Isles. Interestingly enough, Izaak Walton had recognized the need to match artificials and naturals: "there are in Wales, and other countries, peculiar flies, proper to the particular place or country; and doubtless, unless a man makes a fly' to counterfeit that very fly in that place, he i like to lose his labour, or much of it."' In the Catskills, Theodore Gordon understood this; as Francis points out, "the thing that sets Gordon apart from the other early American dry-fly enthusiasts is the fact that he scrutinized English dry' flies and dry-fly tactics and found them unsuited to American trout streams."" Cordon not only knew Halford s books, he also corresponded with him. (Neff's angling correspondence, then, should be viewed as referencing and continuing a well-established tradition.) Gordon's initiatives were continued by others, including Preston Jennings, whose landmark A Book of Trout Flies (1935) proposed new mayfly patterns based on his in-stream studio-of the iqi itn ;j ■; undi: the . r.-k states that Jennings ' -lands in the -imv n tot>■ «i-—h angling a- Ronald . do. , lo British; ea<_r> <>• them w think ot serving as a link between angling and ent. first to approach the role propt riv, and Jo it right most appropriate th it Sett has included actual file the container tor I rancis'sGtl-LL Ki r . In addition to Its willingness to take the dn tlv. unlike the brook trout- has proven retnarkabli ad types of water. Browns are nov. found in the truest Catskills (I tgure 8), the limestoners of South Ccntr (Figures ft & 7) and the spring creel s ot the West if Vincent Marinaro In the Ring of the Ri*c (Figure 7); synopsis of the differences among these waters 1 r stream originates in elevated terrain when surfaci melting snow trickles downhill and merges with o brooks, streams, and finally rivers. Water flow isei with the greatest volume occurring most often dur year. During the summer, the flow declines, and th ture tends to increase. With their rocky bottoms sc and vegetation bv spring Hoods anil winter ice jan generally much less fertile than limestoners. Limes hand, are meadow streams, flowing through areas vast, primordial seas. Unlike the freestoners, whos inorganic, the limestone streams originate in bedrc skeletal remains of the microorganisms that once ii gone ocean-.. Being both porous and easily dissolvi action, limestone makes an ideal aquifer, and the rr springs from these ancient underground reservoir' significant that the flow from these underground constant, in terms of both \ olume and temperature the limestoner does not undergo the cyclical varict stoner. Perhaps even more important, these aikalin calcium carbonate, support a wide variety of aqua! streams are less subject to the cleansing effect- of fl on their bottoms to provide anchorage for wateren �tail. Neff clearly shows how Once its wings dry, the dun flies to ■vhere it undergoes its final meta;r (imago), the mayfly mates. As its ter eggs back into tire stream, and times, the Ephemeroptera—from —have been a symbol of life and its s boxes for the angling corresponritson [Figures 41-44]). The d transparent, fall back upon the trout a meal. The development of td an understanding of the life is on the important postnymphal ital to the development of the s knowledge; and Frederic M. Floating Flies and How to Dress Them ipact on American fly fishing, enous, American anglers quite is for information on its habits, ad; but the ecology of American Tom that of streams in the British alton had recognized the need to a are in Wales, and other countries, ir place or country; and doubtless, feit that very' fly in that place, he is In the Catskills, Theodore points out, "the thing that sets American dry-fly enthusiasts is the flies and dry-fly tactics and found earns."1'' Gordon not only knew ed with him. (Neff's angling wed as referencing and continuing n's initiatives were continued by whose landmark A Book of Trout atterns based on his in-stream studies of the aquatic insect life found in the Catskill rivers. Gingrich Gingrich states that Jennings "stands in the same relationship to American angling as Ronalds does to British; each of them was, if not the first to think of serving as a link between angling and entomology, at least the first to approach the role properly, and do it right."15 It therefore seems most appropriate that Neff has included actual flies tied by Jennings in the container for Francis's Catskill Rivers. In addition to its willingness to take the dry fly, the brown trout_ unlike the brook trout—has proven remarkably adaptive to divers types of water. Browns are now found in the freestone streams of the Catskills (Figure 8), the limestoners of South Central Pennsylvania (Figures 6 & 7) and the spring creeks of the West (Figures 8 & 9). Vincent Marinaro bi the Ring of the Rise (Figure 7) provides a useful synopsis of the differences among these waters. The typical freestone stream originates in elevated terrain when surface water from rain or melting snow trickles downhill and merges with other rivulets to form brooks, streams, and finally rivers. Water flow is extremely varied, with the greatest volume occurring most often during the spring of the year. During the summer, the flow declines, and the water tempera­ ture tends to increase. With their rocky bottoms, scoured free of silt and vegetation by spring floods and winter ice jams, freestoners are generallj’ much less fertile than limestoners. Limestoners, on the other hand, are meadow streams, flowing through areas once covered by vast, primordial seas. Unlike the freestoners, whose rocks tend to be inorganic, the limestone streams originate in bedrock composed of the skeletal remains of the microorganisms that once inhabited the longgone oceans. Being both porous and easily dissolved by chemical action, limestone makes an ideal aquifer, and the modem limestoner springs from these ancient underground reservoirs of water. It is significant that the flow from these underground sources is relatively constant, in terms of both volume and temperature, which means that the limestoner does not undergo the cyclical variations of the freestoner. Perhaps even more important, these alkaline waters, rich in calcium carbonate, support a wide variety of aquatic life. Since these streams are less subject to the cleansing effects of flooding, silt remains on their bottoms to provide anchorage for watercress and other aquatic plants, which in turn add essential oxygen to the water and host whole colonies of tiny snails and bugs—the basic building blocks of the food chain. (Western spring creeks, for the most part, are comparable to the limestoners.) From an ecological standpoint, this means that more and bigger trout are likely to be found in fertile waters (although big fish are also found in large freestone waters because there is a sufficient volume, if not density, of food). Each type of stream has different conditions; and American anglers and angling authors have studied their own home waters closely. For example, fish that live in fast-moving broken water such as rapids or riffles, must decide quickly and impulsively whether to grab a passing morsel before it is swept downstream. The famous, gin-clear, slowmoving streams of Central Pennsylvania, on the other hand, produce wary trout who carefully inspect each offering for any sign of artifici­ ality (color, size, silhouette, or drag). Their selectivity has prompted numerous studies including Vincent Marinaro's In the Ring of the Rise (1976), which interprets the rise patterns of trout as a key to under­ standing their feeding habits (Figure 7). Earlier, Marinaro's studies of the Letort and other limestoners resulted in A Modern Dry Fly Code (1950). Although this work argued for the importance of terrestrials in the diet of these trout and included innovative dressings for flies based on these conclusions, Neff has chosen to represent the Ephemeralla dorothea, known to anglers as the sulpher dun, on the cover (Figure 7). Neff's homage to Marinaro includes flies tied by the master, slides, an audio cassette, and letters—all housed in boxes along with his seminal books. Marinaro's influence is felt in Angling in Hibernia. When Neff first went to Ireland in 1964, and on his return in 1966, he applied Marinaro's experimental approach to the streams of Eire and developed new designs for flies with which to imitate the full range of Irish aquatic insects (Figure 47). Memories of Ireland appear in the abstract land­ scapes of mountains, meadows, rivers, and lakes that adorn both covers of The Angler's Calendar (Figure 14). More literally, we are transported back three decades by the objects preserved in a Cornelllike life box: Mucilin, the old-reliable, pre-silicon floatant; a Hardv Lightweight reel on a simple two-ring reel seat from a cane rod; a The Piscatorial Bindings ofS. .4. Neff, Jr. • 15 �finger vise, small hackle pliers, scissors, hooks, and silk for tying flies streamside; a small glass to identify insects; photographs and pam­ phlets; an amadou for drying flies; a spool of leader material; and a combination scale and measuring tape that promises, like some Baroque allegory, the triumph of truth over falsehood (Figure 49). In Neff's time, trout fishing with the fly has undergone dramatic changes. Once mostly the sport of an elite, often Anglophile, group of men—for whom fly' fishing was an emblem of class—who fished with silk, gut, and Tonkin cane, the sport has gradually found more and more adherents. In the 1940s, after World War II, nylon leaders re­ placed gut, which required soaking prior to use. Next, modern float­ ing lines banished silk, with its confusing designations and high maintenance (C. F. Orvis invented the ventilated reel in the late nineteenth century to facilitate the drying of silk lines [Figure 40, lower center]). Finally, fiberglass at first, and now graphite rods have triumphed over hand-made, split-bamboo wands (except in the eyes of a small band of dedicated partisans). With technological advances, increased environmental awareness, and a wealth of new angling titles, fly fishing has rebounded from its nadir in the early 1950s when it appeared that spin-fishing, a postwar French import that exploited the properties of newly available nylon, would relegate it to history. Yet along with its democratization, many of the sport's traditions have been lost, or are of little interest, to its new adherents. One need only listen to an old-time fly tier talk of water-bird, forest-bird, and other feathers; water-shedding muskrat-beaver-seal furs, or hair from the woodland deer, the meadow hare, the wily fox to understand a great, interconnected cycle that comes together in the flash of a rise or the underwater wink, in Skues's immortal image, of the trout. Today, artificial materials increasingly predominate. Neff's entire endeavor is an homage to tradition and values, craft and sport; it is a studied, but natural, anachronism. In both his bind­ ings and his angling, he stresses continuity and innovation (Figures 26 & 28). He does not disdain his own time, but he moves slowly and reflectively before embracing change. His moral compass does not swing freely with the relativism of the postmodern age but remains 16 • The Collector as Bookbinder fixed. He traverses an ordered landscape where precedent and learn­ ing are the major features. In the face of the cheap, the arriviste, the tawdry, and mass culture, he flaunts his love of the handmade, the beautiful, the unique, and, of course, the trout. Like the cloistered scribes who kept alive great books during the centuries after the fall of Rome, Neff is at heart a preservationist. He is the keeper of the tan­ gible remains of friendship—the letters—for which he constructs elaborate, modern reliquaries or treasuries. Like a carefully considered garden, fly fishing is a magnificent obsession in which civilization and art elevate and transform the mundane into a conceit. It is not a simulacrum; there is really nothing else like it. NOTES 1. Quoted in Charles Jardine, The Classic Guide to Fly-Fishing for Trout (New York: Random House, 1991): 10. 2. John McDonald, The Origins of Angling, 1963 (reprinted New York: Lyons & Burford, 1997): 6. 3. Margaret Bottrall, Introduction in Izaak Walton, The Compleat Angler, 5th ed. 1676 (reprinted London: Dent, Everyman's Library, 1906,1970): viii. 4. Quoted in Bottrall, Introduction, p. v. 5. Izaak Walton, The Compleat Angler, 5th ed. 1676 (reprinted London: Dent, Everyman's Library, 1906,1970): 132. 6. Walton, Cornpleat Angler, p. 137. 7. Ibid., p. 117. 8. Ibid. According to McDonald, the first mention of the reel occurs in Thomas Barker's The Art of Angling (1651) (Origins, p. 23). 9. Quoted in Arnold Gingrich, The Fishing in Print: A Guided Tour Throng': Five Centuries of Angling Literature (New York: Winchester Press, 1974): 60 10. Ibid., p. 73. 11. McDonald, Origins, p. 106. 12. Austin Francis, Catskill Rivers: Birthplace of American Fly Fishing, HN (reprinted New York: Lyons & Burford, 1996): 22. 13. Walton, Compleat Angler, p. 8. 14. Francis, Catskill Rivers, p. 41. 15. Gingrich, Fishing in Print, p. 277. GLOSSARY Adhesives Poly vinyl acetate (PVA) is a flexible glue romi adhering cloth and paper to binder s board Wheat st for adhering leather to binder's board or to leather. Ascona tool A small brass tool with a wooden handle u« templates for blind-tooling Basswood A soft, finely grained wood that is easily rant Binder's board An extremely dense paper board (availab nesses) used for cover boards and boxes. Binding (full) 1 he entire book cover is of goatskin or oth Binding (half) 1 he spine and part of the sides and either edge are covered with goatskin; the remainder is covi decorated paper. Binding (quarter) The spine and part of the sides are cov the remainder is covered with cloth or decorated pap Bound, case A binding technique used primarily lor clotl block is sewn on linen tapes and the cover is made se and last sheets (papers or pages) of the text block are cover bv gluing or pasting. Bound by hand A technique used primarily for leather b block is sewn on linen tapes or cords which are then 1 binder’s board to form an integral unit and then cove Bristol board A stiff acid-free paper made m sec eral thicl tooling templates, bases for raised on-lays, and other Chemise folder A folder made with Bristol board and co Doublure Usually a decorative panel on the inside of the either paper or leather. Drop-back box A container made for storing rare or fraci strutted of cloth or leather over binder’s board Edge T he top edge is the top of the text block: the fore-ed of the text block. A deckle-edge is an uneven edge usi handmade paper; it may be left uncut or trimmed. Tri be treated with graphite or gold leaf and polished. End bands Hand embroidered silk bands or goat-4 in bar ends of the spine of the text block. End papers The first and last few leaves (pages; of the te1 mav be plain, colored, or decorated. �i landscape where precedent and leamthe face of the cheap, the arriviste, the flaunts his love of the handmade, the course, tire trout. Like the cloistered ooks during the centuries after the fall of -vationist. He is the keeper of the tanhe letters—for which he constructs or treasuries. Like a carefully considered icent obsession in which civilization and mundane into a conceit. It is not a thing else like it. The Classic Guide to Fly-Fishing for Trout ): 10. s of Angling, 1963 (reprinted New Y'ork: don in Izaak Walton, The Coinpleat Angler, lent, Everyman's Library', 1906, 1970): viii. :tion, p. v. Angler, 5th ed. 1676 (reprinted London: 970): 132. 137. Id, the first mention of the reel occurs in ig (1651) (Origins, p. 23). The Fishing in Print: A Guided Tour Through (New York: Winchester Press, 1974): 60. rs: Birthplace of American Fly Fishing, 1983 rford, 1996): 22. 3. 277. GLOSSARY Adhesives Polyvinyl acetate (PVA) is a flexible glue commonly used for adhering cloth and paper to binder's board. Wheat starch paste is used for adhering leather to binder's board or to leather. Ascona tool A small brass tool with a wooden handle used with stiff paper templates for blind-tooling. Basswood A soft, finely grained wood that is easily carved. Binder's board An extremely dense paper board (available in six thick­ nesses) used for cover boards and boxes. Binding (full) The entire book cover is of goatskin or other material. Binding (half) The spine and part of the sides and either the corners or foreedge are covered with goatskin; the remainder is covered with cloth or decorated paper. Binding (quarter) The spine and part of the sides are covered with goatskin; the remainder is covered with cloth or decorated paper. Bound, case A binding technique used primarily for cloth covers. The text block is sewn on linen tapes and the cover is made separately. The first and last sheets (papers or pages) of the text block are attached to the cover by gluing or pasting. Bound by hand A technique used primarily for leather bindings. The text block is sewn on linen tapes or cords which are then laced into the binder's board to form an integral unit and then covered with goatskin. Bristol board A stiff acid-free paper made in several thicknesses; used for tooling templates, bases for raised on-lays, and other applications. Chemise folder A folder made with Bristol board and covered with cloth. Doublure Usually' a decorative panel on the inside of the cover; it can be either paper or leather. Drop-back box A container made for storing rare or fragile books; con­ structed of cloth or leather over binder's board. Edge The top edge is the top of the text block; the fore-edge is the front edge of the text block. A deckle-edge is an uneven edge usually found on handmade paper; it may' be left uncut or trimmed. Trimmed edges may be treated with graphite or gold leaf and polished. End bands Hand embroidered silk bands or goatskin bands attached to the ends of the spine of the text block. End papers The first and last few leaves (pages) of the text; the first and last may be plain, colored, or decorated. Goatskin Chagrin—a hand-finished fine grain leather processed in France using South African goatskin; Chieftain—an even, large grain leather processed in Scotland using goatskin from Botswana; Oasis—medium grain leather processed in England using Nigerian goatskin. Goatskin, in-lays Shapes of goatskin pasted into position on the binding where their corresponding shapes have been removed (so the in-lays are flush with the surface of the binding); linear in-lays are very thin strips of goatskin adhered into blind tooled lines. Goatskin, flat on-lays Thinly pared shapes of goatskin pasted onto the binding. Goatskin, raised on-lays Thinly pared goatskin glued onto shapes of fourply' Bristol board, turned-in, and glued onto the binding. Italian cloth A finely woven book cloth with a paper backing. Japanese dyed paper A paper made in Japan using dyed fibers; available in a multiplicity' of colors. Japanese gilt paper A very thin paper with hand-laminated gold-colored foil; also known as Tea chest paper. Marbled paper Paper that has been colored or stained by hand with variegated patterns to resemble marble. Panel design A vertical design of rectangles and borders reminiscent of binding designs commonly used in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Polished graphite A gray metallic covering applied to the edges of the text block and brought to a high sheen bv hand polishing. Stamping A method of impressing an image into goatskin using a press that will heat a die to the necessary temperature; this plain impression is known as blind-stamping; when gold foil is used (a second time) to create an impression, it is known as gilt-stamping. Stamping die A metal block with a design (in relief) used for creating a blind or gilt impression in goatskin or other materials. Text-block All the leaves (pages) sewn on linen tapes or cords. Tooling A method of impressing a small image or line into goatskin using a hand tool or wheel; the plain image is known as blind-tooling; when gold foil or leaf is used, it is known as gilt-tooling. Tooling templates Shapes cut from Bristol board (to the binder's design) are used as guides with the Ascona tool. Vellum, calf Calf-skin treated with lime to produce a strong, cream-colored material for bindings. 17 �1 S. A. Neff, Jr., et al. A Book of Small Flies. Arlington, Vermont, 1983. Created in 1986. Two drop-back boxes containing a unique four-volume set; in full calf vellum with panels of marbled paper and raised bands; gilt-stamped Oasis goatskin on-lays and spine label. k 21.6 x 16.5 cm. 2 Each box contains two volumes; uniformly case-bound in full calf vellum with panels of marbled paper and raised bands; gilt-stamped onlays and spine labels. Vols. I and III are sewn on Oasis covered vellum strips; silk endbands and marbled endpapers. Contents: Vol. I: text; Vol. II: actual flies; Vol. Ill: color photographs; Vol. IV: feathers and furs for dressing small flies. 7.5 x 6 cm. (each volume) R �i 1 2 �3 S. A. Neff, Jr., et al. A Book of Small Flies. Arlington, Vermont, 1983. Created in 1986. A drop-back box containing No. 54 of the original edition of 60 numbered two-voiume sets; in full calf vellum with a panel design of raised vellum, marbled paper, piscatorial devices and spine label gilt-stamped on Oasis goatskin. 26.9/18.4 cm. 4 Box opened to show the original two-volume set bound by Gray Parrot for the publisher and portraits of the four authors. Also contains a vellum back cloth chemise with the manuscript for Mr. Neff's essay, the publisher's correspondence and announcement, and associated items. ��5 Vincent C. Marinaro. f I A Modem Dry-Fly Code. New York, 1950. II Hies, Letters and Photographs. Sewickley, Pennsylvania, 1973. III "A Limestone Challenge." Sewickley, Pennsylvania, 1973. Created in 1988-89. Three drop-back boxes in Italian cloth with marbled paper panels and giltstamped paper spine labels. Box I contains the 1st and 2nd issues of the 1950 edition of the Code. Box II contains a drop-back box with five flies dressed by .Mr. .Marinaro and a portrait; two chemise folders containing an unbound suite of photographs of the author; and five of his letters. Box III is on': of a set of two, each of which contains a tray of 35 mm. slides and an audio cassette documentary on Marinaro; it functions horizontally and is contained in a cloth slip-case. I: 24.1 z 16 8 cm.; II: 30.1 x 24 cm.; Ill: 26.8 z 28.5 cm. ��7 t 6 Vincent C. Marinaro. A Modern Dry-Fly Code. New York, 1970 (new edition), and In the Ring of the Rise. New York, 1976. Created in 1989. A drop-back box containing two volumes; with Italian cloth back and edges; panels of Japanese dyed and gilt papers and gilt-stamped paper spine labels. 30 / 24 cm. 7 Both volumes are case-bound with Italian cloth back and edges with panels of Japanese dyed and gilt papers, gilt-stamped paper spine labels, silk endbands and color endpapers. The panels on the box portray the Cumberland Valley in Pennsylvania; the Code shows the Letort Spring Kun and a mayfly; th<- Ring reveals a feeding brown trout in that stream. Code: 21.5 / 13.8 cm.; Ring: 28 x 21.2 cm. �•iSk>3^CMK_4. -, H I L if r/ . r ^: �8 S. A. Neff, Jr. Essay from The Masters on the Nymph. New York, 1979. Created in 1989-90. A drop-back box containing three volumes; with green Chieftain goatskin back and edges with panels of Japanese dyed and gilt papers and giltstamped goatskin spine label. The back panel portrays a Catskill river, and the front panel a Western limestone creek. 28.2x19.7 cm. �8 �f 9 Vol. I: Text. Green Chieftain goatskin back and edges with panels of Japanese dyed and gilt papers, gilt-stamped goatskin spine label, silk endbands and color endpapers. The panels show a brown trout in a Western limestone creek. 25.9 x 17.3 cm. t 10 Vol. Ill: Manuscript and Photographs. Green Chieftain goatskin back and edges with panels of Japanese dyed and gilt papers, gilt-stamped goatskin spine label. Contains a cloth chemise with typed manuscript, photographs, and publisher's correspon­ dence. The panels reveal nymphs on the bottom of a Catskill river and a Western limestone creek. 25.9 x 17.3 cm. �9 10 �11 Vol. IF. Flies and Materials. Green Chieftain goatskin back and edges with panels of Japanese dyed and gilt papers, gilt-stamped goatskin spine label. Contains a cloth folder. The panels depict a rainbow trout in a Catskill river. 25.9x 17.3 cm. 12 Vol. Il: Cloth folder. Actual trout flies; furs, feathers and hooks, mounted on printed plates. �11 12 > * * -b4 < - �13 Catalogue of the Library of Thomas Westwood, Esq. New York, 1873, and Charles M. Wetzel. American Fishing Books. Stone Harbor, New Jersey, 1990. Both bound in 1990. Left: bound in full dark red Chieftain goatskin with horizontal raised goat­ skin on-lavs of two shades, and gold leather; pictorial paper in-lay, giltstamped goatskin spine label, leather endbands and marbled endpapers. 24x17.8 cm. Right bound in full dark red Chieftain goatskin with raised horizontal bars, gilt-stamped facsimile of author's signature, gilt-stamped goatskin spine label, leather endbands and marbled endpapers. 25.1 x 18.4 cm. 14 Hi Regan. The Angler's Calendar. London, 1896, and Izaak Walton and Charles Cotton. The Complete Angler. London, 1836. Both bound in 1991. Left bound in full green Oasis goatskin with on-lays of various goatskins, blind tooling, gilt-stamped goatskin spine label, leather endbands and marbled endpapers. Panels contain shapes symbolizing Ireland's moun­ tains, meadows, rivers, and lakes. 24.6 z 18 cm. Right: bound in full dark green Chieftain goatskin with flat and raised on­ lays of various goatskins, blind tooling, gilt-stamped goatskin spine label silk endbands and marbled endpapers. The IWCC cypher was devised bv Charles Cotton in 1674. 17.5x10.5 cm. ��f 15 Austin M. Francis. Catskill Rivers: Birthplace of American Fly Fishing. New York, 1983. Created in 1991. A drop-back box in full dark green Chieftain goatskin with panel of Japanese dyed and gilt papers and gilt-stamped goatskin raised on-lay spine label. The panel depicts the trout of the Catskill rivers: the brook trout (leaping downward) declined near the end of the nineteenth century, to be replaced by the brown trout imported from Europe (moving upward). 40 x 24.5 cm. 16 Bound in full dark green Chieftain goatskin with title in raised on-lays of the same leather; three on-lays of various blue goatskins, pictorial doublures, leather endbands and color endpapers. The three flowing shapes symbolize the major Catskill rivers. 28.5 z 21.5 cm. ��I J 17 Front doublure portraying the upper Beaverkill River and a caddis th panel of Japanese dyed and gilt papers, goatskin edges and hinge. 18 Back doublure showing the East Branch of the Delaware Rix er and a mayfly; panel of Japanese dyed and gilt papers, goatskin edges and hinge. ��19 Charles Bowlker. The Art of Angling. Birmingham, 1792, and Ludlow, 1826. Created in 1992. A drop-back box containing two volumes; in full brown Chieftain goatskin with blind tooling, goatskin on-lays and gilt-stamped goatskin spine label. 19.2 x 13 cm. 20 Uniformly bound in full brown Chieftain goatskin with blind tooling, goatskin on-lays, gilt-stamped goatskin spine label, silk endbands and marbled endpapers. The pattern is a twentieth-centurv version of an eighteenth-century panel design. 17.1 X 10.8 cm. ��21 Anonymous. The Gentleman Angler. London, 1726; 3rd. ed., n.d.; 1786. Created in 1992. A drop-back box containing three volumes; in full dark red Chagrin goatskin with blind tooling, goatskin on-lays and gilt-stamped goatskin spine label. 18.5x12.2 cm. 22 Bound uniformly in dark red Chagrin goatskin with blind tooling, goatskin on-lays, gilt-stamped goatskin spine labels, leather endbands and marbled endpapers. The pattern is a twentieth-century version of an eighteenth-century panel design. 1:16.2 x 9.5 cm. 2:16.4 x 9.6 cm. 3:15 x8.8 cm. ��24 f 23 Rodolphe L. Coigney. Izaak Walton: A New Bibliography 1653-1987. New York, 1989. Created in 1992. A center-opening box containing an inner box with two volumes; in full dark green Chieftain goatskin with cypher of raised on-lays of various goatskins. The IWCC cypher has appeared in numerous editions of The Complete Angler beginning with the 5th edition in 1676. 28.2 x 20.3 x 9.5 cm. 24 Outer box open to reveal triptych of Japanese dyed and gilt papers with goatskin edges and hinges. The center panel is the cover of tire inner box. The panels portray Charles Cotton's Fishing House on the River Dove, built in 1674. ��25 Volumes I and II: uniformly bound in full red hand-finished goatskin with blind tooling, flat goatskin on-lays, raised goatskin on-lays with giltstamped piscatorial images, gilt-stamped goatskin spine labels, pictorial doublures. Vol. I contains the text; leather endbands with multiple color on-lays and color endpapers. Vol. II contains a chemise with Mr. Neff's color photographs of the River Dove and the Fishing House. 26.1 x 17.2 cm. 26 Front doublure of Vol. I: Japanese dyed and gilt papers, leather edges and hinge. The panel depicts a seventeenth-century angler on an English river. 27 Back doublure of Vol. I: Japanese dyed and gilt papers, leather edges and hinge. The panel shows a seventeenth-century angler catching a fish. 28 Front doublure of Vol. II: Japanese dyed and gilt papers, leather edges and hinge, a cloth chemise is attached to the inside of the back cover. A twentieth-century angler replaces the seventeenth-century angler on the same river. ��► 29 Rev. Joseph Adams. Angling in Ireland. London, 1938. (A unique copy.) Created in 1993. A drop-back box in full green Chieftain goatskin with blind tooling and gilt-stamped title. 23.7x15.8 cm. 30 Bound in full green Chieftain goatskin with goatskin on-lays, gilt tooling on covers, spine and top and bottom edges, leather endbands and color endpapers. The blind-tooled design of a flowing river on the box intro­ duces the more developed decoration on the binding. 21.8 x 13.7 cm. ��31 Robert Huish. The Improved British Angler. Derby, 1838. Created in 1990; decorated in 1994. Bound in full gray-blue Oasis goatskin with goatskin in-lays, gilt tooling, gilt-stamped devices and goatskin spine label, silk endbands and marbled endpapers. Contained in a cloth chemise with a goatskin back and a quarter goatskin slip-case, with gilt-stamped goatskin spine labels. This is a r.ventieth-century interpretation of an eighteenth-century panel design. 5bp-ca~e: 14.4 x 11.5 cm.; Chemise: 13.8 x 11.2 cm.; Binding: 13.6 x 10.4 cm. f 32 Izaak Walton and Charles Cotton. The Complete Angler. London, 1797. Created in 1994. A drop-back box in full dark green Chieftain goatskin with linear goatskin in-lays and gilt-stamped goatskin spine label. 20.3 / 13.3 cm. 33 Bound in full dark green Chieftain goatskin with panels of goatskin onlavs. linear goatskin in-lays, gilt tooling, gilt-stamped device and spine label, leather endbands with on-lays, marbled endpapers and polished graphite on top edge. This is a twentieth-century version of a seventeenth­ century panel design. The simple design on the box introduces the developed design on the binding. 18 / 10.4 an. �����I 37 ■i ���41 The Angling Letters ofS. A. Neff, Jr. and J. S. Hewitson. 1965-1999. Sewickley, Pennsylvania, 1997. Created in 1996-97. A uniform set of four drop-back boxes containing letters and photographs from the mid-1960s to the end of the 1990s. 1960s Box: Full dark red Chagrin goatskin with a twentieth-century panel design of concentric circles of linear goatskin in-lays, a raised goatskin onlay on each cover with linear goatskin in-lay circles and a gilt-stamped device, and gilt-stamped raised goatskin on-lay spine label. Contains two cloth chemise folders: one with letters written during the decade and the other with photographs by Mr. Neff that illustrate an angling experience. The gilt-stamped device depicting a mayfly nymph becomes a metaphor for the relationship between the two anglers. 30.7 z 24 cm. 42 1970s Box: The gilt device becomes a mayfly dun as the relationship develops. 30.7x24 cm. ■ ��- )•> 43 1980s Box: The gilt device becomes a mayfly spinner as the anglers mature. 30.7 z 24 cm. 44 1990s Box: The gilt device remains a mayfly spinner. 30.7 z 24 cm. ��45 S. A. Neff, Jr. Angling in Hibernia. Sewickley, Pennsylvania, 1998. Created in 1998. A uniform set of five volumes; in full brown Chieftain goatskin with a Celtic device blind-tooled on each cover, gilt-tooled dots, pictorial doublures with panels of Japanese dyed and gilt papers, on front and back of Vol. I and front only on other volumes. I Vol. I; Text. Vol. II: Contains a cloth chemise with 30 photographs taken by the author. Vol. Ill: Fold-out container with 158 Irish flies devised and dressed by the author. Vol. IV: Fold-out container with the author's fly patterns and the feathers, furs and hooks for dressing Irish flies. Vol. V: Life-box containing the author's Irish angling memorabilia. A pull-out drawer contains Irish angling pamphlets and correspondence. �■ \ J 45 I 1 § I' k F » s ! I !• 11 5’ i i - § ili co 3 co 3- S’ t a i S’ :i’ I'I ■ ■ �46 Vol. Ill: Irish trout flies. 30.8 x 21 cm. 47 Vol. Ill: Panel of Japanese dyed and gilt papers and fold-out container with 158 Irish trout flies. The panel depicts an Irish brown trout about to rise to the author's Green Drake fly. �46 47 1 -» »» - A _ �■ 48 Vol. V: Memento hominem. 30.8 x 21 cm. 49 Vol. V: Panel of Japanese dyed and gilt papers and life box with angling memorabilia and tools. The panel depicts an Irish brown trout in the landing net. �48 49 Wir ‘^Sv: fci �a ACKNOWLEDGMENTS S. A. NEFF, JR. Resides: Sewickley, Pennsylvania EXHIBITIONS 1986 80 Years Later [Guild of Book Workers' 80th Anniversary Exhibition] (juried), Center for the Book, University of Iowa Museum of Art, Iowa City, Iowa; Detroit Public Library, Detroit, Michigan; MIT Museum, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Institute for the Book Arts, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama; Folger Shakespeare >r.' f\ ■ Massachusetts 1993 Exhibition of Design for Communications (invitational). West Virginia Library, Washington, D. C. University, Morgantown, W'est Virginia 1988 Bound To Learn: An Invitational Exhibit of the Book Arts, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia 1992-1993 Fine Printers Finely Bound Too [Guild of Book Workers' 86th Anniversary Exhibition] (juried), Explore Print!, San Francisco, California; Scripps College, Claremont, California; Dallas Public Library, Dallas, Texas; Minnesota Center for the Book Arts, Minneapolis, Minnesota; The University of Michigan Library, Ann Arbor. Michigan; Newberry Library, Chicago, Illinois; Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, Pennsylvania 1989 ,'L ■ 1992 10th Anniversary Exhibition of the New England Chapter of the Guild of of Our National I k-ritage, 1Lexington, Book Workers (juried), Museum c. Members' Exhibition, Guild of Book Workers, New England Chapter, Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, Rhode Island ic? II.' ■ 1990 The Collector As Bookbinder: The Piscatorial Bindings ofS. A. Neff, Jr., Fine & Rare Book Room, Hunt Library, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 1990-1991 Contemporary American Bookbinding; An Exhibition Organized by the Grolier Club at the Invitation of Les Amis de la Reliure Originate (juried), Bibliotheque de TArsenal, Paris, France; Bibliotheca Wittockiana, Brussels, Belgium; The Grolier Club, New York, New York 66 ARTICLES Robert H. Boyle. "Design: A Tier Who Binds in the Angling World," Sports Illustrated (January' 1991). The bookbinder wi-h> to express he. gratitude te hi her support and patience: to Philip R. Bishup for 1>: . tion of the catalogue manuscript and ter his w ise un friends Tom Alden, Elisabeth R. Agro, Robert!! Boy 1.. F. Boker Doyle, Richard A. I uller, Stanley I Grand, ai Elisabeth Agro wishes to thank Tracy Mvers for a i her essay. The Sordoni Ail < ..tilery thanks the artist tor mati possible. In addition, the Gallery wishes to thank Su enthusiasm; 1 lisabeth Agro lor her insightful rs iv. (. hristopher N. Brei eth's and Robert J. Fleaman’s e<; on my essay. Nancy L. Krueger bus provided invalu. all aspects of the exhibition. Finally we thank the following individuals and in will be hosting the exhibition: Nancy Kelley, Coordh rary Exhibits, New York State Museum: James E. Kii Cleveland Museum of Natural History. ( raig Morri American Museum of Natural History; David Peril i Roche ,ter Institute of Tec hnology, Can. Collection: C Director, and Sean Sonderson, Curator, The America Fishing. �ACKNOWLEDGMENTS liter of the Guild of Iritage, Lexington, il). West Virginia 86th Anniversary difomia; Scripps \ Dallas, Texas; innesota; The i; Newberry Library, Pennsylvania The bookbinder wishes to express his gratitude to his wife, Sue, for her support and patience; to Philip R. Bishop for his critical examina­ tion of the catalogue manuscript and for his wise counsel; and to his friends Tom Alden, Elisabeth R. Agro, Robert H. Boyle, Jeff Cornelia, L. F. Boker Doyle, Richard A. Fuller, Stanley I Grand, and Linda Tonetti. Elisabeth Agro wishes to thank Tracy Myers for a critical reading of her essay. The Sordoni Art Gallery thanks the artist for making this exhibition possible. In addition, the Gallery wishes to thank Sue Neff for her enthusiasm; Elisabeth Agro for her insightful essay. I appreciate Christopher N. Breiseth's and Robert J. Heaman's editorial comments on my essay. Nancy L. Krueger has provided invaluable assistance on all aspects of the exhibition. Finallj' we thank the following individuals and institutions who will be hosting the exhibition: Nancy Kelley, Coordinator of Tempo­ rary Exhibits, New York State Museum; James E. King, Director, Cleveland Museum of Natural History; Craig Morris, Dean of Science, American Museum of Natural History; David Pankow, Curator, Rochester Institute of Technology, Cary Collection; Gary Tanner, Director, and Sean Sonderson, Curator, The American Museum of Fly Fishing. —SIG Angling World/' 67 �ADVISORY COMMISSION Bonnie C. Bedford, Ph.D. Freddie Bittenbender Christopher N. Breiseth, Ph.D. Marion M. Conyngham Virginia C. Davis, Chair Stanley I Grand, Ph.D. Robert J. Fleaman, Ph.D. Marv Jane Henry Keith A. Hunter, Esq. J. Michael Lennon, Ph.D. Melanie Maslow Lumia Theo Lumia Kenneth Marquis Hank O'Neal Arnold Rifkin Charles A. Shaffer, Esq. Susan Adams Shoemaker, Esq. William Shull Helen Farr Sloan Andrew J. Sordoni, III Sanford B. Stemlieb, M.D. Mindi Thalenfeld Thomas H. van Arsdale Joel Zitofsky EXHIBITION UNDERWRITERS Friends of the Sordoni Art Gallery M & T Bank Maslow Lumia Bartorillo Advertising Mellon Bank Pennsylvania Council on the Arts The Piscatoribus Press The John Sloan Memorial Foundation, Inc. Andrew J. Sordoni, III Wilkes University SPONSORS The Business Council CBI-Creative Business Interiors Mr. and Mrs. David C. Hall Marquis Art and Frame PNC Bank, NA Panzitta Enterprises, Inc. STAFF Stanley I Grand, Ph.D., Director Nancy L. Krueger, Coordinator Earl W. Lehman, Preparator 4.. 68 Gallery Attendants Deidre Blake Marcy Fritz Jon Geller Jill Klicka Allison McGarvey �«IBE. ? i �ill S � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Sordoni Art Gallery Exhibition Programs, 1973-present Description An account of the resource Exhibition programs created by the Sordoni Art Gallery from 1973 to the present. Digitized by Wilkes University Archives interns, Zachary Mendoza and Sophia Kruspha. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource The Sordoni Art Gallery Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Wilkes University Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Sordoni Art Gallery Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1973-present Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Wilkes University retains copyright of these exhibition programs. Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Exhibition programs, flyers, and calendars. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1999 The Collector as Bookbinder: The Piscatorial Bindings of S.A. Neff, Jr. Subject The topic of the resource Exhibition programs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource S.A. Neff Jr. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Sordoni Art Gallery; Wilkes University Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1999 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Type The nature or genre of the resource Exhibition Book https://omeka.wilkes.edu/omeka/files/original/388a882d0a935ac7fb663f7ed5c634fb.pdf b4ec9a0e2c2db91a0831f26de3405405 PDF Text Text ■ if ' ■■ . g. J I �©IF Ml BW AMERICAN MASTERS co. 1910-cq. ^960 §©&©©« A^T ©ALLIW C@1ULI1©I1 APRIL 12-MAY 17, 1981 E.S. FARLEY LIBRARY WILKES UNIVERSITY wilkes-barre^pa. Sponsored by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and The John Sloan Memorial Foundation 3 �FOREWORD This exhibition is devoted to works by twenty-six American artists who studied under members of The Eight, one of the seminal groups of early twentieth century progressive artists in this country. This show provides a sequel to our 1979 exhibition of The Eight themselves. No attempt has been made here to be comprehensive, since over a period of some forty years there were literally hundreds of students, representing all degrees of achievement. The Eight unquestionally influenced many artists who were not their students, as well, although those influences are usually more difficult to ascertain. The artists chosen for this exhibition are generally regarded as major figures in American art, and together they represent a wide range of styles and attitudes, indeed, a virtual cross-section of art in the United States between 1910 and 1960. The exhibition, therefore, illuminates the vitality and diversity of that period, as it also defines, at least in part, the heritage of those among The Eight who shared their ideals through teaching. Numerous persons and institutions deserve recognition for their important contributions to this project. I should first like to extend our deep appreciation to the lenders, whose generosity provided the works which make up the exhibition. We are also greatly indebted to the John Sloan Memorial Foundation and the Pennsylvania Council for the Arts, which provided the funding for the project. I wish to thank personally those persons in the gallery and at the college whose help and cooperation were significant: Cara Berryman, Exhibitions Coordinator; Albert Margolies, chairman of the Advisory Commission, and the members of the Commission; Dr. Thomas Kelly, Dean of External Affairs; and Robert S. Capin, President of the College. 4 Finally, I extend special thanks to Mrs. Helen Farr Sloan for her invaluable advice and support, and for her introductory essay in this catalogue. , ARCHNS ... £ 0 Ri) G i '■ WILLIAM STERLING Director INTRODUCTI by Helen Farr Slot Any serious thoughtful observer o paintings by the group of artists knc would be puzzled by the term Ashcc identify the work they showed at M Words, published long after the evei indelible impression, a misleading in philosophy that brought these artists grouped around Robert Henri. He w the progressive avant-garde at the ti man John Sloan called "The Abraha Art." The diversity of personalities, tale styles of painting shown by those ei aspect of their philosophy: respect fi talent, and the desire to provide opj flourish, with freedom of expression demonstrate the value of work done working for themselves unfettered b commercial demands; on their own "independent" creative personalities, they had a common interest in depit world. (Even Davies' lyrical nymph: landscapes are idealized concepts of There has often been a mistaken ide interest in politics, or a desire to de] fact, Sloan was the only member of became interested in political matter years after that exhibition. As for ti Henri encouraged his friends and sti the everyday world of city and com city subjects show everyday people Parks and restaurants and bathing t Sloan called his subject matter: "Bit: �y, I extend special thanks to Mrs. Helen Farr Sloan nvaluable advice and support, and for her tory essay in this catalogue. WILLIAM STERLING Director I INTRODUCTION by Helen Farr Sloan Any serious thoughtful observer of an exhibition of paintings by the group of artists known as "The Eight" would be puzzled by the term Ashcan school used to identify the work they showed at Macbeth Gallery in 1908. Words, published long after the event, have left an indelible impression, a misleading interpretation of the philosophy that brought these artists together as friends grouped around Robert Henri. He was the natural leader of the progressive avant-garde at the turn of the century, the man John Sloan called "The Abraham Lincoln of American Art." The diversity of personalities, talents, and concomitant styles of painting shown by those eight artists reveal one aspect of their philosophy: respect for diversity of creative talent, and the desire to provide opportunities for art to flourish, with freedom of expression. They wanted to demonstrate the value of work done by American artists, working for themselves unfettered by academic or commercial demands; on their own initiative as "independent" creative personalities. At that time, in 1908, they had a common interest in depicting the everyday world. (Even Davies' lyrical nymphs in mountain landscapes are idealized concepts of a natural real world.) There has often been a mistaken idea that the group had an interest in politics, or a desire to depict urban slums. In fact, Sloan was the only member of the group who ever became interested in political matters, and not until several years after that exhibition. As for the subject matter, while Henri encouraged his friends and students to paint life — the everyday world of city and countryside — most of the city subjects show everyday people engaged in recreation. Parks and restaurants and bathing beaches provided what Sloan called his subject matter: "Bits of joy in human life." The series of independent group shows, beginning in 1901 at the Allan Gallery and culminating in the large Independent Show of 1910, provided experience in organizing exhibitions. The 1910 show was a precursor of the Armory Show of 1913 which brought an illuminating cross-section of modem art to this country for the first time. These exhibitions were organized by the artists, largely financed by themselves and in the case of the 1913 Armory Show, a few art collectors like Mrs. Harry Payne Whitney and Miss Lizzie Bliss. The friends and followers of The Eight taught their contemporaries the importance of voluntary public service, that very fine old characteristic of America's pioneers. The defense of independence, the protection of diversity in democratic cultural institutions; these are principles which the group taught in practical form. ! Several of The Eight were also teachers of drawing and painting in the formal sense. Henri and Sloan and George Luks taught for many years, both privately and at schools like the New York School of Art, and the Art Students League. Some of their most distinguished pupils are seen in this exhibition. It is so good to see that there is a happy extraordinary variety of work — none of it imitating the original teachers. For, in fact, a number of them, having learned the lesson of responsible independence (freedom, not license), learned again from other teachers like Kenneth Hayes Millar or Jan Matulka some insights which helped their talents to develop yet another synthesis. In every case the talent has been forged with integrity. In addition to the well-known teachers who had formal classes, it may be forgotten that a man like Maurice Prendergast had pupils who learned to appreciate the superb design and color of medieval miniatures from France and Persia and India, from him and his brother Charles. And it was Prendergast whose appreciation for Cezanne stimulated interest on the part of his friends who had not seen the work of that great modem, who died in 1906. In Sloan's day of 1910 he tells of finding an article in The 90-17: 5 �fast u1 Burlington Magazine, "Was much interested in the work of Cezanne, some of which was reproduced. A big man this, his fame is to grow." Of course Sloan had never been able to go abroad, having to support his family from the age of sixteen; but even if he had gone to Paris he might not have had the opportunity to see much work by the moderns in the Nineties. Van Wyck Brooks, who knew Prendergast, said that Sloan told him how Prendergast would come in the room and repeat to his friends: "You should know Cezanne I" It was not until the Armory Show exhibited a group of Cezanne's paintings that the work was known in color, in this country. Now that we are accustomed to superb color reproductions in books that survey the world of Impressionists and Modernists, it is exceedingly hard to realize that artists, even those who lived for years in France, were not really familiar with the work. It was shown so little, in a few independent shows, in restaurants and shops run by paint dealers. Maybe it has been more exciting for art students and even mature artists, to make some discoveries, bit by bit — to assimilate fresh ideas without being swamped by what Lewis Mumford has described as image-fatigue, being punch-drunk on familiarity with too much art. Artists at the time of The Eight were not over-exposed. Their immediate problem was that in this country there were so few places to exhibit work. The academic juries had a rigid political control over what got into the big public exhibitions. There were very few art dealers. Sentimental realism, genteel subject matter, imitation impressionism; these styles and subjects were acceptable. "The Eight" was formed by an accidental encounter with the jury system of the National Academy. It was a little protest made by associates of Robert Henri who had been shocked by the negative action of a jury that threw out the work of his students and friends. The show was organized spontaneously. There was no purpose other than to demonstrate the need to encourage the idea of "Open Door" exhibitions, such as the 1910 Independent Show that 6 they were able to organize later. (Henri also initiated the MacDowell jury system, based on proportional representation.) The pupils and associates of the men around Henri have carried back to all parts of the United States this attitude toward open door exhibitions, opportunities to show by both professional and amateur artists. They have been a leavening in the world of American art. Their viewpoint in one direction was "inclusive — open the doors of opportunity" but they were not opposed to the principle that Alfred Stieglitz advocated, "exclusive — selection of quality." Only the Henri crowd felt that the open door must come first, to counteract the power politics of fashion in art institutions. It would always be necessary to demonstrate and defend the democratic principle in cultural matters to encourage variety of expression, to respect independence. The wisdom of this point of view should be clear from study of cultural history in the past hundred years. Suppose Ryder had stopped painting because his work was not appreciated critically and financially! What a gap there would be in our artistic heritage if Prendergast had stopped making frames to earn the free time to paint his joyful scenes. What an unimaginable loss! The students who gathered around The Eight held all kinds of jobs to support their own creative work — night watchmen, accountants, dish washers, illustrators, designers, actors and authors. Some became administrators of the WPA art projects. Several became known as teachers. Richard Lahey ran the Corcoran School of Art, and Kimon Nicolaides' book The Natural Way to Draw has reached several generations of art students. Today the historical situation for young artists is so different from that faced by The Eight. Now there are more opportunities to obtain college scholarships and to exhibit creative work.. New York is not the only art center in the country. Contemporary museums have been established in many places. There is perhaps a more insidious pressure to be influenced by the , a sefiO.U. ,\ contemporary^• cost . be creative -ship of support. Recent Recent " n. history d-’t- ‘ oTce agairX only a small percentage a can survive withonly integrity by counting >ivf * sales. Henri, for instance, made a col­ the itis portrait painting. In addition to tfound patrons early in his career but Hi bloomer. He was in his forties before hi and from that time on he did have patrl and David Smith had many lean years I chapter of financial security. Students, j professional artists need to be reminded] facts - to keep perspective on their wd courage to persevere. 1 �rOnHenri also th k to aUpJ°f -he ’men le United ions, Professional and in the worldamateur 'of or* direction was opportunity" but tb ,at Alfred StiegliS1they [on of quality." Only the door must come first, to fashion in art institutions o demonstrate and defend oral matters to encourage ■t independence. view should be clear from past hundred years. inting because his work was inancially! What a gap there ;e if Prendergast had stopped time to paint his joyful loss 1 round The Eight held all >wn creative work — night washers, illustrators, Some became administrators al became known as e Corcoran School of Art,, Draw he Natural Way to C. — has art students. n for young artists is so ie Eight. Now there are more scholarships and to exhi^ ,t the only art ce^ished m TmoTinX- P— tO contemporary art, a serious pressure for young people to contend with. The cost of living is more complicated by the income that must be set aside for taxes. It usually becomes a necessity for a creative artist to cultivate a side-line in teaching or craftsmanship which can provide a reliable means of support. Recent history does teach this lesson once again that only a small percentage of unique talents can survive with integrity by counting on contemporary sales. Henri, for instance, made a comfortable living with his portrait painting. In addition to the teaching, Bellows found patrons early in his career but Hopper was a late bloomer. He was in his forties before his talent matured and from that time on he did have patronage. Stuart Davis and David Smith had many lean years before the late chapter of financial security. Students, and even professional artists need to be reminded of these realistic facts — to keep perspective on their work and regain the courage to persevere. THE STUDENTS OF THE EIGHT IN AMERICAN ART by William Sterling "The two dominant forces in my early art education were the teachings of Robert Henri whose school I attended and the Armory Show of Modem European art in 1913. These influences were foremost in forming my ideas and taste about what a modem picture should be. Both were revolutionary in character, and stood in direct opposition to traditional and academic concepts of art."1 (STUART DAVIS) After World War II, New York City emerged as the capital of the art world, thereby ending the leadership of Paris, which had prevailed for more than a century. For the first time in its history, the United States led the way to the most radical developments in art. The war had severely disrupted the cultural life of Europe, and even before the war many European artists and intellectuals had emigrated to America to avoid persecution. They brought with them their entire repertoire of avant-garde ideas. At the same time, a generation of American artists achieved its maturity in modernism and stood ready to explore new frontiers. Prior to the war, American artists had, for the most part, been followers rather than leaders. In the late nineteenth century, a few eccentrics, such as Ryder, created their own highly personal expressions, but had little influence on their contemporaries. Several others, such as Whistler and Cassatt, managed to join the European avant-garde, but they remained expatriates. The earliest stirrings of an independent American modernist movement came in the first two decades of this century. In 1908, the famous exhibition of The Eight marked the first significant repudiation of academic dogma and style in art. The Eight, comprised of Robert Henri, John Sloan, George Luks, Ernest Lawson, William Glackens, Everett Shinn, Arthur B. Davies, and Maurice Prendergast, were never a cohesive group. They were simply congenial spirits who came together for a single exhibition at New York's Macbeth Gallery. But that exhibition was one of the salient �st&EfcaafS events of American art. Like the earlier independent salons of the Realists and the Impressionists in France, it struck a blow for artistic freedom in the face of a rigidly conservative academy system. Two years later, Henri, Sloan, Davies, and Walt Kuhn put together a far larger show, the Exhibition of Independent Artists. The taste for adventure and the lure of artistic freedom had begun to spread. The largest and most influential event came in 1913 with the great Armory Show in New York, where the latest European styles were revealed to Americans for the first time en masse. The effect of these exhibitions was to break, once and for all, the grip of the academies upon the American art scene. An American artist could now follow his own course without fear of automatic isolation, and the forbidden fruit of European modernism could be tasted without censure. Two approaches to modernism emerged in the second decade. Henri and his associates took up a rather chauvinistic position, urging American artists to develop an indigenous modernism which would remain independent of European styles. Various realist styles from the "Ash-Can" school to the Regionalists of the 1920s represented this approach. The other approach led to Europe and the adoption of the latest abstract styles, particularly Cubism, Futurism, and later. Surrealism. The prime movers of this approach included the photographer and patron Alfred Stieglitz, Walter Pach, and Arthur B. Davies (who had shared Henri's democratic attitudes more than his tastes). Already by 1915, artists such as Max Weber and Marsden Hartley had gone to Europe and had embraced the very newest discoveries. The "Europeanists" became the more radical group in terms of artistic style, since they favored the various abstract forms which the term "Modern Art" has usually been associated with. The Henri group remained relatively conservative in its adherence to more or less naturalistic styles. Before World War I, The Eight had enjoyed the status of America's avant-garde. Their unsentimental and upcompromising realism was coupled with an outspoken liberalism in matters of artistic self-determination. Most free-thinking artists of the time adopted their anti­ establishment stance, if not their particular styles. This situation changed in the late teens and early twenties, as more and more artists were drawn toward Europe. Some, like Henri's student Patrick Henry Bruce, became expatriates. Others, like another student, Stuart Davis, absorbed European modernism but remained at home. As a result of the Armory Show and subsequent contacts with visiting avant-garde personalities from abroad (for example, Marcel Duchamp and Francis Picabia), America's knowledge of European developments grew rapidly and widely. The Stieglitz faction, centered in his "291 Gallery," promoted an artistic formalism which shunned any narrative or illustrational emphasis. Henri's group resisted such formalism, and resolutely maintained that art must first of all communicate ideas, and that content must take precedence over form. During the years between the two world wars, the relative prominence of one polarity over the other swung back and forth. Especially during the Depression, naturalism enjoyed revitalized popularity, not only in America but in Europe, too. Early abstractionists such as Weber, Hartley, and Morgan Russell returned to figurative work, and generally lost favor with the modernist critics. Only in the forties did a new and unquestionally more original form of abstraction come to the fore in America. It was then that the Abstract Expressionists, led by Pollock and Gorky, burst upon the scene, and inherited the mantle of radicalism from war-torn Europe. The works which make up this exhibition provide something close to a cross-section of that vital and varied period in American art. They also bear witness to the significant role played by a few brilliant teachers. p rx th^1 >5 2 mu ,'uJ‘ nWmore UX’rl idrnt Uont^nt things. I htfBrh you myopm * “dl v.,u some thmg, about t how Then you must > ejpcrkrtce and hard work The students of The Eigh cross-section of American < and forties. From figurativ* Hopper to abstractionists li every new and vital directii among The Eight who wert imposed narrow doctrine. ( an atmosphere of discipline During that era of lmrnei immunity, as well as in it role Played by the sources Oration was enn wd*eArmorys?rmOus- new ideas and7c h°W °pei Ua^alloif°rniS- ^tit F°rs^youendarti^toe> ?OU^torouJartls^ the atalyst �had g' ' ■hthA aMh I tatUs of ' sejf-d an Ouh deterjriinaH PcAen eir Particular toWard as Bruce. becUar°Pe- Some, ler student St 'The best advice I have ever given to students under me has been nest this: ‘Educate yourself. do not let me educate you . . ' Real students go out of beaten paths, whether beaten by themsefess or by others. and have adventure with the unknown.”2 (ROBERT HENRI) 3nalit^dfrS^S|puen\ ^ntacts IVnuteoer the Henri School may have lacked in systematic discipline was more than made up for by positive contributions ... Sy developing the student's confidence in his own perceptions, it gave his work a freshness and personality that was lacking in the student work of other schools." 3 (STUART DAVIS) entered iohis -291 i which shunned any Basis. Henri's group resisted i don't want to interfere with your way of seeing, if you are seeing things. 1 have no tricks to teach you. I don't want to teach you my opinions, but if you can get hold of my point of view 1 don't think it will hurt you. I am here to help you. I want to help you find a purpose, a reason for painting. I can tell you some things about the "how" to paint. Not any one 'how.' Then you must find your way through your own experience and hard work. ‘ * (JOHN SLOAN) r maintained that art must and that content must take te two world wars, the larity over the other swung ing the Depression, popularity, not only in arly abstractionists such as Russell returned to figurative ■ with the modernist critics, ind unquestionally more ,me to the fore in America. It ,ressionists, led by Pollock "“and inherited jrope. his exhibition provide ion of that vital and[ varied to the also bear witness teachers. v brilliant The students of The Eight do indeed constitute a cross-section of American art during the twenties, thirties, and forties. From figurative painters like Bellows and Hopper to abstractionists like Davis and Gottlieb, virtually every’ new and vital direction was represented. Those among The Eight who were active as teachers by no means imposed narrow doctrine. On the contrary, they cultivated an atmosphere of disciplined self-determination. During that era of immense growth in America's artistic community, as well as in its aesthetic sophistication, the role played by the sources of artistic information and inspiration was enormous. Exhibitions such as The Eight and the Armory Show opened eyes and minds to radically new ideas and forms. Institutions like the Art Students League allowed artists to experiment with those new ideas. For some young artists, the very sight of the new was enough to rouse them into action, but for most, the teacher remained a crucial catalyst in their transformation. There were a number of important teachers in the early twentieth century who are identifiable today by the large number of major artists who studied with them. Preeminent with Robert Henri and John Sloan were William Merritt Chase, Kenneth Hayes Miller, and Arthur W. Dow. Probably as many as half of America's historically significant painters, maturing in the teens, twenties, and thirties, studied under one or more of these men. Other than Hans Hofmann and Joseph Albers, perhaps, no teachers since that time have enjoyed such wide influence. Today, as even the formerly most provincial sections of our country have become cosmopolitan (at least in their best schools), the teaching of art has become highly decentralized. New York City may still be the major hub of progressive artistic activity, but most New York artists arrive there after their training, nowadays. Virtually every school and every teacher across the land have ready access to the same periodicals, the same reproductions, and often the same exhibitions. Things were different at the beginning of the century. A few important art academies, and within them a few outstanding instructors, dominated art training in this country, and to some extent aesthetic values as well. Robert Henri had been the prime mover, the original leader of those Philadelphians who made up the nucleus of The Eight: Sloan, Luks, Shinn, and Glackens. Sloan and Luks, in particular, followed Henri in the pursuit of teaching. Lawson and Prendergast also took students on occasion, but they never had the broad impact of Henri and Sloan. Glackens and Davies never taught, although Davies wielded much influence through his activities as an organizer, supporter, and critic. The students of The Eight, therefore, were mostly students of only three members of the group: Henri, Sloan and Luks. Even before their landmark exhibition, Henri was teaching at the New York School of Art, which was run by William Merritt Chase. He held forth there from 1903 until 1907, then ran his own school until 1912. After that, he 9 �i3*7h <tud^ ?tdc>pFerf of \list* ” r taught at the Art Students League, as well as the progressive Ferrer School. Henri was a born teacher, a charismatic man with strong opinions, sharp insights, and cutting wit. As often as not, his classroom discussions dealt with literature, music, or philosophy. Life was the stuff of art, and Henri encouraged his students to study life as vigorously as they studied art. As Stuart Davis said of his mentor's approach, "art was not a matter of rules and techniques, or the search for an absolute ideal of beauty. It was the expression of ideas and emotions about the life of the time." Henri's method was regarded as radical at the time, but his aim seems clear enough today. He sought to instill his students with a sense of art's relevance to real experience. ■ 1 John Sloan continued this approach with equal enthusiasm and success. Having taken pupils as early as 1912, he joined the faculty of the Art Student's League in 1916. In 1931, he was elected president of the League, although he resigned the following year after a heated quarrel with the governing board over its refusal to hire the German emigre modernist, George Grosz. He left the League for three years, during which time he taught at Archipenko's Ecole d'Arte and took over the Luks School of Painting upon the death of George Luks in 1933. i s I During the twenties, Sloan's classes were immensely popular, and like Henri's, they were lively centers of criticism, philosophy, politics, and humor. Sloan shared Henri's sense of the priority of ideas and feeling in painting, as well as his disapproval of "art for art's sake." Yet, Sloan was by no means insensitive to the formalistic concerns of art, which were central to so many modern movements. He once stated that "the subject may be of first importance to the artist when he starts a picture, but it should be of least importance in the finished product. The subject is of no aesthetic significance." 5 This attitude put Sloan in tune with the younger generation. One of Stuart Davis' few criticisms of Henri 10 had been that the latter placed too much emphasis on subject matter. Indeed, Henri, much more than Sloan, had resisted the formalistic preoccupations of the Cubists. Fauves, and Futurists, and had sought to minimize their influence on American modernism. If Henri and Sloan had had only their artistic style to offer their students, little more than a new generation of "Ash-Can" painters would have emerged from their classes. What these teachers did offer their students was considerably more significant. It was an attitude about art and what it meant to be an artist in the twentieth century; it was an attitude about freedom which allowed the student to question any rule or tradition or approach, not excluding those of Henri and Sloan themselves. It is on this basis that an exhibition of artists so diverse in style can reveal something about the course of modern art in America. Some of these artists studied long and faithfully under one master or the other. Others came into the fold for only a year or less, and never said much about their experience. But it is difficult to imagine that any impressionable young art student was not touched by the spirit of freedom, candor, and common sense which was to be encountered in the classes of Henri and Sloan. Although these masters never became radicals in style, they promoted an openness to new ideas which allowed their students unusual latitude in those days. They were the "progressive educators" of the art schools. Robert Henri counted among his students, in addition to the aforementioned Stuart Davis, such determined modernists as Patrick Henry Bruce, Morgan Russell, Man Ray, Walter Pach, and Arnold Friedman. Less radical but no less important were Edward Hopper, George Bellows, Rockwell Kent, Guy Pene du Bois, and Glenn Coleman. It is clear that no common element of style binds these men. Rather, it is their sense of independence and their search for an honest means of self-expression which link them to Henri. X 1 the P- ?erSedAa>can * J t>tf uS e* aS J tranS,en centUrVtic re'leCtlL’ at,endTnyofhi5f^afstrl,ctUr€h bv ^cametobe^ realistsd Giff°rd CeorgeBelloWS an nd grandeur of t conned vvithormah US ( modem today than Hopper , modernism, they continue to speak .nap language. The modernists among Henris student' < of as defectors who had bolted from the p< doesn’t appear that the master ever serious their more radical convictions. For exampl hvely and friendly correspondence with Pa 5B™ceafter flatter had gone to Pans stl ^£ a>..SS‘wb“d’"Spectrum nat''ran''rr the various exhibit; l 'jfganJ Stu, �tHe SSj1'had rtis«c Styie to generation of :r°m their classes. ts Was “itude about art J’entieth century’; lowed the student ach, not elves. rtists so diverse urse of modem ed long and Zithers came into said much about ne that any touched by the nse which was to Sloan. Although le, they promoted heir students the "progressive ts, in addition to errnined in Russell, Man Less radical but ieorge Bellows, enn Coleman. It ,inds these mentd their search fo ink them to Hopper, Bellows, and Coleman remained closer to Henri's style than many students, but each fashioned a strong individual manner. Hopper, of course, eventually emerged as one of the preeminent realists in twentieth century’ American art. Accepting Henri s view of art as an authentic reflection of life as most of us experience it. Hopper added his own sense of the mystery’ of existence attendant to special moments of transience and solitude. Like many of his colleagues, he also developed a stronger awareness of the formal structure of his pictures, so that his works came to be admired as much by’ abstractionists as by realists. need not look closely to see the imprint of his master's teaching. When Henri sent Davis and the other students roaming through the streets of New York to capture the real pulse of the city, he planted the seed which ultimately gave Davis' cubism its highly original stamp. Images of city life, from billboards and signs to chain-link fences and cigarette wrappers, were transmitted through jazz-like rhythms and blasting colors. Brasher, bolder, and cleaner than its European counterparts, Davis' cubism epitomized the energy and efficiency of America in the early twentieth century. Henri's "Ash-Can" scene had been distilled into its elemental shapes and rhythms. George Bellows and Gifford Beal responded to Henri's feeling for the energy’ and grandeur of the American scene, and anticipated the Regionalists in their muscular, almost romantic vision of both city and country’. Bellows' brash, bravura manner was particularly close to Henri's style. Less concerned with formalist structure, his works look less modem today than Hopper's, but outside the context of modernism, they continue to speak in a powerful expressive language. John Sloan's roster of students was equally impressive and equally diverse. Perhaps because he was dealing with a younger generation than had Henri, more of his famous students went on into abstraction. Adolph Gottlieb, Barnett Newman, and the sculptors Alexander Calder and David Smith were among the most influential and radical artists of the forties and fifties, and participated in America's succession to leadership in the world of art. As with Henri, it was Sloan's persona and philosophy rather than his artistic style which most affected these later masters. The modernists among Henri's students could be thought of as defectors who had bolted from the pack, but it doesn't appear that the master ever seriously objected to their more radical convictions. For example, he kept up a lively and friendly correspondence with Patrick Henry Bruce after the latter had gone to Paris, studied with Matisse, and developed his own abstract style. It is also true that he accepted a wide spectrum of modernists into the various exhibitions he helped to organize between 1908 and 1918. While he remained wary of modernism, Henri was really hostile only to reactionary academicism. Of the modernists who studied with Henri, none was more brilliant than Stuart Davis, who is generally regarded as one of the greatest painters America has yet produced. Stylistically, his art veered decisively toward synthetic cubism a few years after he left Henri's studio, but one Sloan was less wary of European modernism than Henri had been, even though he was one of the few major American artists of the time who never visited Europe. Nevertheless, he took a keen interest in the work of men such as Matisse and Picasso, and even shared their interest in African and Pre-Columbian art. Furthermore, he actively supported modernism in his role as president of the Society of Independent Artists, which had been founded in 1917 by Marcel Duchamp, Man Ray, Walter Pach, William Glackens and others, and which remained an important sustainer of progressive artists until 1944. While he never painted abstractly himself, Sloan said he had learned a great deal about artistic form from the "ultra-moderns." Of course, Sloan also had a devoted following of realists, such as Reginald Marsh and Aaron Bohrod. Reginald 11 �SO the Marsh, as an inheritor of the "Ash-Can" tradition, became a virtual alter-ego to his contemporary, Edward Hopper. He filled Hopper's silent streets and desolate interiors with teeming life, and in spirit and imagery, if not in style, paralleled the art of Stuart Davis, as well. Perhaps because of his own experience as an illustrator over the years, Sloan helped to train some of America's leading illustrators, among them Peggy Bacon, Cecil Bell, and Roger Tory Peterson, as well as outstanding cartoonists such as Otto Soglow (famous for "The Little King"), Don Freeman, and Chon Day. Consistent with his democratic attitudes, Sloan made no sharp distinctions between illustration and "fine art." II The catholicity of Sloan's teaching and influence is underscored by the prominence and popularity he enjoyed between the two wars. As a practitioner of realism on the one hand and a supporter of modernism on the other, he easily adjusted to the changing tides of taste which characterized this period. The initial burst of American modernism which followed the Armory Show of 1913 and seemed destined to dominate the American art scene for the generation to come actually subsided after World War I. As in Europe, the energy of radicalism was temporarily spent, and many of the avant-garde were disillusioned by the enormous destruction of the war. In America, the populace adopted a position of isolationism, and American artists, by and large, turned to scene painting and social realism. Just as the fires of modernism were being stoked up again in the late twenties, the Depression dampened them once more. I During the thirties, most of the students of Henri, Sloan, and Luks took part, with thousands of other American artists, in the Federal Arts Project under the W.P.A. Even before that time, many of them had been politically active, usually on the left, Sloan's classes remained a congenial place for social-minded young artists, although his own socialist activism had diminished over the years. In his ■ 12 youth, Sloan had been a committed radical, and in 1910, he had run, unsuccessfully, for the New York State Assembly on the Socialist ticket. Shortly thereafter, he became art director for the radical magazine "The Masses." Many students of Henri and Sloan worked at one time or another as political cartoonists, including Davis, Coleman, Soglow, and William Gropper. Philip Evergood, a student of Luks, was also one of the outstanding "political" painters of the thirties and forties. The Depression did not lead to a significant new wave of socialist art in America, however. Nor did Regionalist naturalism remain for long the dominant trend. The modernists, dispersed though they were, stood ready to return to the fore. The world of the twentieth century, in its technological and existentialist complexity, was ultimately their world. Marsh, Beal, and du Bois no longer seemed to be as relevant as Gottlieb, Newman, and Smith. The students of The Eight had spanned the extremes of American art in the first half of our century. ", . . (a student should) cultivate an attitude toward his studies which is both flexible and critical. It should be flexible enough so that he can change his mind as often as need be; and it should be critical in that he need not take either the professed 'modem' or the professed 'conservative' at their own evaluation." • (JOHN SLOAN) . Le'lderS Altschul An°nyI11C'< - Arthur u Mr5' , MuseUrP ierican Museum of Art The But‘e ° Herbert F. )°h M,„.r. Ar. .IM—' Gallery Everhart Museum of Natural Hist. Scranton Hirshhom Museum and Sculpture The Smithsonian Institution National Museum of American Ar The Smithsonian Institution The Pennsylvania State University Princeton University, Art Museum NOTES Rutgers University, Art Gallery Smith College, Museum of Art 1. Kelder, Diane (ed.) Stuart Davis (New York, 1971) p. 20 2. Henri, Robert, The Art Spirit (Philadelphia, 1951) pp. 134,165 3. Kelder, Stuart Davis, p. 22 4. Sloan, John, Gist of Art (New York, 1977) p. 7 5. Sloan, Gist of Art, p. 41 6. Sloan, Gist of Art, p, 11 An Cod^ um.,icanAr �J radical bortlv State r^tly theIxiagazine .- he Masses " Worked at °ne time or' uding DaVis c 7 ndln8 leman, political”student Painters a? ^significant new wave of did Regionalist eof imant trend. The were, stood ready to e twentieth century, in omplexity, was I, and du Bois no longer b, Newman, and Smith, med the extremes of r century. itude toward his studies hould be flexible enough •n as need be; and it ake either the professed e' at their own (JOHN SLOAN) LENDERS TO THE EXHIBITION Anonymous Lenders Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Altschul The Brooklyn Museum The Butler Institution of American Art, Youngstown Carnegie Institute, Museum of Art, Pittsburgh University of Connecticut, William Benton Museum of Art Cornell University, Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art Delaware Art Museum University of Delaware, Gallery’ Everhart Museum of Natural History’, Science and Art, Scranton Hirshhom Museum and Sculpture Garden, The Smithsonian Institution National Museum of American Art, The Smithsonian Institution The Pennsylvania State University, Museum of Art LIST OF WORKS 1. BACON, Peggy John Sloan's Lecture etching, 9" x 11" Delaware Art Museum; gift of Helen Farr Sloan 2. BACON, Peggy A Simple Life (1954) watercolor, 24" x 181//" Syracuse University, Art Collections 3. BEAL, Gifford Bareback Rider oil on canvas, 18" x 36" Private Collection 4. BELLOWS, George Life Class lithograph, 19" x 251//” The Pennsylvania State University Museum of Art Princeton University, Art Museum Rutgers University, Art Gallery Smith College, Museum of Art 5 (New York, 1971) Syracuse University, Art Collections Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford ’hiladelphia, 1951) fork, 1977) P- 7 Whitney Museum of American Art, Nev/ York City 5. BELLOWS, George Summer Surf (1914) oil on board, 18" x 22” Delaware Art Museum, gift of the Friends of Art 6. BRUCE, Patrick Henry Peinture/Nature Morte (Abstract) (1933) oil on canvas, 35" x 46" Museum of Art, Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh; gift of G. David Thompson, 1956 13 �iii: i\ I I i 7. CALDER, Alexander Trapeze Artists pen and ink, 0.55m x 0.76m The Art Museum, Princeton University; gift of Mrs. Harper, in memory of Raymond H. Harper 13. DAVIS, Stuart Gloucester Landscape (1918) oil on canvas, 24" x 30" Rutgers University Art Gallery, New Brunswick, New Jersey gatc^- 8. CALDER, Alexander Brie & Brae (1963) gouache, T7" x 40" Syracuse University, Art Collections 14. DU BOIS, Guy Pene Conversation oil on board, 13%6" x 9%" Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, The Ella Gallup Sumner and Mary Catlin Sumner Collection Mood (1909) oil on canvas, 60' Museum Whitney t of the Artist, 9. COLEMAN, Glenn O. Gloucester Harbor oil on canvas, 34" x 25" The Brooklyn Museum, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Alan H. Temple 15. DU BOIS, Guy Pene Yvonne (1930) oil on canvas, 2136" x 1736" Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Arthur G. Altschul 10. DASBURG, Andrew Poppies oil on canvas, 4034" x 2634" Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution 16. EVERGOOD, Philip Canadian Gold Mine (1943) oil on canvas, 25" x 30" Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University, gift of Harry N. Abrams 11. DAVIS, Stuart Au Bon Coin (1928-29) lithograph, 1134" x 936" University of Delaware Gallery 17. EVERGOOD, Philip Rider on Pink Horse (ca. 1945) oil on canvas, 16" x 12" Everhart Museum of Natural History, Science and Art, Scranton 12. DAVIS, Stuart Composition (1935) oil on canvas, 2234" x 30" National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution (transfer from General Services Administration) I 14 18. FRIEDMAN, Arnold Blue River oil on canvas, 24" x 30" The Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, Ohio farn oil on Mu: pelaware Art ?OTTi^Ado1 GOTTLIEB, Adol Nigld Glow (1971 aquatint, 34" x 26 Delaware Art Mu: 22. GOTTLIEB, Adol Seer (1947) oil on masonite, 3 The Butler Institut 23. GROPPER, Willia The Senate lithograph, 14" x : Delaware Art Mus 24. HIRSCH, Joseph Fr»ncis and Bird ( oil on canvas, 27" PriVate Collection �i) 19. GATCH, Lee Pennsylvania Farm (1936) oil on canvas, 14' x 36" Delaware Art Museum, John L. Sexton bequest ery, f on°ecHonhe Gallup Sum^r Arthur G. Altschul of Art, Cornell University, 25. HOPPER, Edward Artist Seated at Easel (ca. 1903) oil on canvas, 18' x 10" The William Benton Museum of Art, The University of Connecticut, Anonymous Donor 20. GOTTLIEB, Adolph Mood (1969) oil on canvas, 60" x 40' Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; gift of the Artist, 1969 (69.150) 26. HOPPER, Edward The Cat Boat etching, 8" x 10" The Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, Ohio 21. GOTTLIEB, Adolph Night Glow (1971) aquatint, 34" x IbW" Delaware Art Museum, gift of Mrs. H. Rodney Sharp 27. KENT, Rockwell Northern Light woodcut, 5Vz" x 8%" Delaware Art Museum, gift of Mrs. A. Ralph Snyder 22. GO11LIEB, Adolph Seer (1947) oil on masonite, 30' x 24" The Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, Ohio 28. MARSH, Reginald Coney Island Beach (1934) etching, 13" x 10%" Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University 23. GROPPER, William The Senate lithograph, 14' x 18' Delaware Art Museum, gift of Helen Farr Sloan 29. MARSH, Reginald Lehigh Valley watercolor, 14" x 20" The Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, Ohio 24. HIRSCH, Joseph Francis and Bird (1979) oil on canvas, 27" x 19" Private Collection 30. MARSH, Reginald Negress and White Girl in Subway (1938) tempera on masonite, 24" x 18" The William Benton Museum of Art, The University of Connecticut, Anonymous Donor 45) .1 History, Science and Art, Youngstown, Ohio rican Art, is �31. MORRIS, George L. K. New Year's Eve (1945-46) oil on canvas, 38" x 30%" National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, Given Anonymously h 32. MORRIS, George L. K. Industrial Landscape (1936-50) oil on canvas, 49%" x 63% " National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, Given Anonymously 33. NEWMAN, Barnett Black and White (1948) black ink on paper, 24" x 16% " Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, Massachusetts Gift of Philip C. Johnson, 1952 I I 34. RAY, Man Les Mains Libres: La Femme Portative (1936) pen and ink, 0.38m x 0.28m The Art Museum, Princeton University, purchased with the Laura P. Hall Memorial Fund 35. RAY, Man Untitled (1915) oil on board, IS1/?" x 12% " National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, gift of Flora E. H. Shawan 36. RUSSELL, Morgan Nu-Assis (ca. 1923-25) oil on canvas, 28%" x 21%" National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, Museum Purchase 16 37. RUSSELL, Morgan Synchromy (1915-17) oil on canvas, 12%' x 10%" Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution 38. SMITH, David Untitled (1956) oil and sand on canvas, 73%" x 11" Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution 39. SOYER, Moses Three Men (1974) oil on canvas, 25" x 30" Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University 40. SPENCER, Niles Above the Excavation #2 (1949) oil on board, 12" x 16" Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University 41. SPRINCHORN, Carl Daisy Fields and Clouds, Shin Pond, Maine (1950) oil on canvas, 21" x 29" Private Collection 42. SPENCER, Niles The Bay (1937) oil on canvas, 20" x 32" Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University �10% " J Sculpture G?r,; c warden. THE ARTISTS PEGGY BACON (1895' 7^Vs” x 11" 1 Sculpture Garden, 'nnsylvania State University 2 (1949) eum of Art, Cornell University Born in Ridgefield, Connecticut, Bacon studied painting at the Art Students League from 1915 to 1920, under John Sloan, George Bellows, and Kenneth Hayes Miller. Self-taught as a printmaker she soon gained attention for her illustrated books. After traveling in Europe between 1920 and 1922, she returned to Woodstock, New York and a career of uninterrupted success as a painter, illustrator poet, and fiction writer. Her most famous work is a book of caricatures of famous contemporary personalities called Off With Their Heads! (1934) Aside from her caricatures and other pictures of social satire, Bacon's work typically focused upon everyday life in the city. Her style exemplifies the kind of illustration which flourished under Sloan's influence: a brisk, energetic handling; dynamic compositions, and graphic vigor. Her sure use of tensive line may also be compared to the acerbic style of the great German satirist, George Grosz. In 1975, Bacon was given a major exhibition at the National Collection of Fine Arts. Shin Pond, Maine (1950) gum of Art, Cornell University 17 �II I 18 GIFFORD BEAL (1879-1956) GEORGE BELLOWS (1882-1925) A native of New York City, Beal graduated from Princeton University before going on to the Art Students' League, where he studied painting with Robert Henri, William Merritt Chase, and Frank DuMond. He joined the League's faculty and served as its president from 1914 to 1929. Like many painters of his generation, Beal executed commissions for the Federal Arts Project of the W.P.A. in the 1930's, including the mural in the Allentown, Pennsylvania post office. Bellows came from Columbus, Ohio. He studied with Henri from 1904-1906, and became the youngest associate of the National Academy of Design in 1908. He joined the faculty of the Art Students League in 1910. He became one of the organizers of the great Armory Show, and with Prendergast, Glackens, Duchamp and others, was one of the founders of the Society of Independent Artists in 1917. His early and continued success was brought to a premature end by a fatal attack of appendicitis. Beal, like his contemporary and colleague George Bellows, produced a muscular romantic naturalism in his painting, but more often than Bellows, he found his inspiration in the rural landscape rather than the urban environment. He also produced dynamic genre subjects, such as the circus scene in this exhibition. This work employs the vibrant palette and rich surfaces of the Impressionists and Fauves, and clearly echoes Henri's straightforward and exuberant approach to the subject. Bellows was one of Henri's most faithful followers. Nevertheless, he fashioned a distinctive and powerful style. His early work was particularly fresh and exuberant, and included some of his most famous pictures, such as the prize fights and Hudson River views of the city. His style is often regarded as a paradigm of the American spirit in the early 20th century: brash, aggressive, optimistic, and indefatigable. In his last years, he turned to portraits, which were as sensitive as his earlier works were bold. Bellows' brisk, graphic style was also well-suited to the print medium, which he handled with consummate skill. PATRICK HENRY BRU A native of Virginia, Bru Henri in 1902 and 1903. He with Matisse in 1907, and d 1912, he had become intere: color experiments of Robert the Armory Show, and con European avant-garde movt evolved his unique manner the early twenties, which h( until he gave up painting in aristocratic spirit, Bruce cot disinterest in his work. He and destroyed many of his New York in 1937. He com Bruce has been rediscove by Pop artists and hard-ed^ regarded as one of the mos American artists of the earl �I rm MS °!OJ- k 4. ■ BELLOWS (1882-1925) came from Columbus, Ohio. He studied with 11904-1906, and became the youngest associate onal Academy of Design in 1908. He joined the he Art Students League in 1910. He became one nizers of the great Armory Show, and with t, Glackens, Duchamp and others, was one of rs of the Society of Independent Artists in 1917. nd continued success was brought to a end by a fatal attack of appendicitis. vas one of Henri’s most faithful followers, is, he fashioned a distinctive and powerful style, ■ork was particularly fresh and exuberant, and me of his most famous pictures, such as the and Hudson River views of the city. His style is led as a paradigm of the American spirit in the tentury: brash, aggressive, optimistic, and le. In his last years, he turned to portraits, 1 as sensitive as his earlier works were bold, isk, graphic style was also well-suited to the tm, which he handled with consummate skill. / A native of Virginia, Bruce studied in New York under Henri in 1902 and 1903. He went to Paris, where he studied with Matisse in 1907, and developed a Fauve-like style. By 1912. he had become interested in the more systematic color experiments of Robert Delaunay. Bruce exhibited in the Armory Show, and continued to be involved with European avant-garde movements during the war years. He evolved his unique manner of geometric still-life painting in the early twenties, which he refined over the next decade until he gave up painting in 1932. A man of sensitive and aristocratic spirit, Bruce could not accept the public disinterest in his work. He became increasingly withdrawn, and destroyed many of his paintings before returning to -\ew York in 1937. He committed suicide shortly afterward. Bruce has been rediscovered in recent years, particularly by Pop artists and hard-edge painters, and he is now regarded as one of the most important and original American artists of the early 20th century. r 8. 6. PATRICK HENRY BRUCE (1881-1937) O ALEXANDER CALDER (1899-1976) The son and grandson of eminent American sculptors, Calder came to his pursuit naturally. Born in Lawnton, Pennsylvania, he studied mechanical engineering at Stevens Institute before entering the Art Students League in 1923. There, he studied painting with Sloan until 1925. The following year, he went to Europe and began working in sculpture, initially doing small improvisations in wire and wood. His contact with the non-objective painter Mondrian in 1930 spurred his exploration of abstract form. In 1931, with his creation of the mobile, Calder became the first American sculptor to stand among the world's foremost artistic innovators. One of the earliest kinetic sculptures, the mobile employed space and natural air movements, as well as boldly colored organic shapes. Calder's lyrical and playful mobiles and non-moving stabiles have become distinctive monuments throughout the world, amalgams of industrial technology and human poetry. Always an experimenter, Calder worked in all media. His prints echoed the forms of his sculptures, but took on an even greater sense of surrealist spontaneity. 19 �GLENN COLEMAN (1887-1932) ANDREW DASBURG (1887-1979) An Ohioan, Coleman arrived in New York City in 1905. He became a student of Henri, and remained one of the staunchest preservers of the Ash-Can style during the twenties. Like his predecessors in that style, he sought out the picturesque comers of the metropolis, and depicted them with straightforward naturalism. Though he lacked the bravura and vigor of a Sloan or a Bellows in these early works, he created honest, well-crafted pictures which revealed something of the tone of city life of that decade. Toward the end of his life and under the influence of Cubism, Coleman began to transmute his urban scenes into monumental stylizations of the city's architecture. The more personal vision was, unfortunately, cut short by his early death. Dasburg was born in Paris, but his family moved to New York in 1892. He studied at the Art Students League under Robert Henri, as well as under Kenyon Cox and Frank DuMond. From 1909 to 1911, he resided in the city of his birth, where he came under the influence of the Cubists. He exhibited Cubist paintings in the Armory Show of 1913, and Synchromist works (see: Russell) in the Forum Exhibition of 1916. After these early major appearances, he rarely exhibited again, and eventually left New York to take up residence in Taos, New Mexico. A sensitive and unaggressive man, Coleman received only sporadic public attention during his life. His friend Stuart Davis regarded him as one of the most gifted and unsung American artists of the twenties. 20 Although an early American participant in avant-garde movements of Europe, and highly regarded by the Modernists of his generation, Dasburg fell into relative obscurity until the late fifties. At that time, retrospectives of his work were held at the Dallas Museum (1957) and the American Federation of Arts (1959), and just before his death, Van Deren Coke completed a monograph on his life li e and art. i STUART DAVIS (1894-1964) GUY PEN Son of the art editor of the Philadelphia Press Davis was early associated with his fathers' co-workers, (and, later, members of The Eight), Sloan, Luks, Glackens and Shinn. He left school at 16, and went to New York to study with Henri. Between 1913 and 1916, he worked chiefly as an illustrator for The Masses and Harper's Weekly. His taste for the more avant-garde styles of the day developed out of the Armory Show, and soon led him to a front-line position in the American vanguard. His liberal sympathies brought him editorship of the Art Front, a publication of the Artists' Union, in 1935. Bom in b Chase, DuN painter, du with a serie self-indulgei mixture of < decadent m compatible Davis created one of the most original variants on Cubism, one which has been called characteristically American in its bold simplicity, brash color, and pre-Pop imagery. His fondness for jazz combined with his enjoyment of the urban pace to produce the highly staccato pictorical structure found in much of his work. His W.P.A. murals, such as the famous one in Radio City Music Hall, e ped to broaden his reputation, but even without these, avis would stand among the major painters of the entieth century. His late works brought him close to a paint^er ®enerat'on P°P, Hard-Edge, and Color-Field Of Frencl in France, \ and traditic style and c< mellowed a remained d and worke< and jouma His repu ambiguous work this s perspectivf �I ■ r W&i J? r t f ~ iI 7, 12. moved to New s League under and Frank the city of his the Cubists. He ow of 1913, Forum ppearances, he ew York to i avant-garde ?y the to relative •etrospectives (1957) and the before his aph on his life hfe 15. STUART DAVIS (1894-1964) GUY PENE DU BOIS (1884-1958) Son of the art editor of the Philadelphia Press Davis was early associated with his fathers' co-workers, (and, later, members of The Eight), Sloan, Luks. Glackens and Shinn. He left school at 16, and went to New York to study with Henri. Between 1913 and 1916, he worked chiefly as an illustrator for The Masses and Harper s Weekly. His taste for the more avant-garde styles of the dayT developed out of the Armory Show, and soon led him to a front-line position in the American vanguard. His liberal sympathies brought him editorship of the Art Front, a publication of the Artists’ Union, in 1935. Born in New York City, du Bois studied under Henri, Chase, DuMond, and Miller. An uneven and intermittant painter, du Bois reached his artistic peak in the twenties with a series of satirical paintings aimed at the self-indulgent lifestyle of the wealthy bourgeoisie. An odd mixture of classical simplicity. Art Deco stylization, and decadent mood gave his art a "Weimar" atmosphere guite compatible with that era. Davis created one of the most original variants on Cubism, one which has been called characteristically American in its bold simplicity, brash color, and pre-Pop imagery. His fondness for jazz combined with his enjoyment of the urban pace to produce the highly staccato pictorical structure found in much of his vzork. His W.P.A. murals, such as the famous one in Radio City Music Hall, helped to broaden his reputation, but even without these, Davis would stand among the major painters of the twentieth century. His late works brought him close to a younger generation of Pop, Hard-Edge, and Color-Field painters. Of French extraction, du Bois spent the years 1924-1930 in France, where he took a deep interest in French culture and tradition. He was especially fond of the monumental style and caricature of Daumier. In the 1930s du Bois' style mellowed and the satire waned, but his art always remained distinctive. He was also a prolific writer on art, and worked as an art critic for several major newspapers and journals. His reputation over the past few decades has been ambiguous, but the Corcoran Museum's retrospective of his work this spring will undoubtedly provide us with a fresh perspective of du Bois and his place in American art. 21 �>1 \ ! PHILIP EVERGOOD (1901-1973) ARNOLD FRIEDMAN (1874-1946) Evergood was born in New York City, and studied at the Art Students League under George Luks in 1923. He had already taken a diploma in drawing from London's Slade School of Art, but Luks urged him to become a painter. An admirer of Sloan's work, Evergood became a close friend of Sloan, who spurred his interest in human themes. During the Depression, he concentrated on social and political subjects, and was involved in several artists' activist groups, such as the Artist's Union. During the period of the W.P.A. art projects, Evergood was supervisor of the easel painting division for New York. Born into a poor immigrant family in New York City, Friedman started work at an early age, and, reminded of the poverty of his youth, remained employed by the postal service until his retirement in 1933. He began his art studies in 1905 at the Art Students League, under Henri who aroused his enthusiasm for painting. He got to Paris for several months in 1908, where he took a strong interest in Seurat's divisionist color techniques. Following the Armory Show, he began to work abstractly, in a style close to Russell's Synchromism. Later in his career, he turned to more personal and spiritual themes, and became increasingly experimentive with the painting medium, so much so that his style shows considerable variation over the years. A difficult painter to classify, Evergood used elements of expressionism, surrealism, and cubism as the theme demanded. But his use of these elements was never academic. It was part of his ceaseless search for the appropriate impassioned image. Beneath the modernist veneer, one often felt the presence of the folklore and mysticism of his Russian heritage. Lee Gatch grew at the Maryland In was a visiting prof Kroll, and, in Paris Gatch was strongly Cubism, but his w< Friedman's commitment to abstraction was never total, and he returned to a figurative mode by 1920. Although he had joined with colleagues such as Bellows, Hopper, and Coleman in early progressive art activities, he became increasingly isolated in the twenties. His full-time postal job expressionistic com style. He develops attachment to natu and textures into h ^d-iston; left little time for painting and professional involvements. Only after his retirement could he return to a steady t935' he lived a ra medhl§hly methodi regimen of painting. resDIUni Iilnited his Friedman is an interesting example of an early modernist whose great potential was mitigated by external concerns. Nevertheless, he did develop a highly personal, if major Sk Painter it Sh°Wbythe incompletely formed style. 22 LEE GATCH (1 �t J L - [ _ / £ 18. 46) n New York City, and, reminded of ployed by the postal began his art studies der Henri who e got to Paris for a strong interest in illowing the Armory a style close to ____ . 19. LEE GATCH (1902-1968) n was never total, y 1920. Although he >ws, Hopper, and ies, he became s full-time postal job ,nal involvements, n to a steady an early external srsonaL w I Lee Gatch grew up in the Baltimore area, and studied art at the Maryland Institute during the time that John Sloan was a visiting professor there. He also studied with Leon Kroll, and, in Paris, with Andre Lhote. During the thirties, Gatch was strongly influenced by Impressionism and Cubism, but his work proceeded basically upon an expressionistic course, developing into a resonant personal style. He developed an intense and almost mystical attachment to nature, and incorporated its colors, forms, and textures into his often abstract patterns. He even attached real stones to some of his later canvases. After 1935, he lived a rather reclusive life in rural New Jersey. His highly methodical and experimentive approach to the medium limited his output, but he remained a highly respected painter in the forties and fifties. He was given a major show by the Whitney Museum in 1960. rI ? 21. ADOLPH GOTTLIEB (1903-1974) A native New Yorker, Gottlieb studied at the Art Students League under both Henri and Sloan. He also studied in Paris, Berlin, and Munich during the 1920s. His development as an artist largely paralleled the major trends of his day. In the thirties his work dealt with the American scene and social realism. By 1940, he was immersed in a more personal magic realism, akin to surrealism. During the forties, this personal approach developed into a symbolic and atavistic pictography, not unlike Miro's in concept, but quite unique in style. Gottlieb gradually simplified his pictographic imagery into the spare, but explosive "Burst" paintings of the fifties. These pictures, contrasting a chaotic form with an holistic one, became his trademark, and took their place among the most vital and individual statements of the Abstract Expressionists. Indeed, his style stood between the florid spontaneity of Pollock and DeKooning and the austere colorism of Rothko and Newman. 23 �I !! I EDWARD H WILLIAM GROPPER (1897-1977) JOSEPH HIRSCH (1910- Gropper was the son of a poor New York garment worker. He dropped out of school in order to help support the family, but his intense interest and aptitude in art led him to take courses at the Ferrer School in 1912-13, where he studied under Henri and Bellows. In 1919, he became a political cartoonist for the New York Tribune and remained active as a cartoonist through the twenties. He began serious painting in 1921. At 71, the last-bom painter in the exhibition, Hirsch continues to work in the realist tradition of his mantor George Luks. Born in Philadelphia he received his first art training at the Pennsylvania Museum School before moving on to New York City and Luks' school. Cropper's outspoken support of radical social reforms brought him an invitation from writers Theodore Dreiser and Sinclair Lewis to accompany them on their tour of Russia in 1927. Social and political themes in an expressionistic style, reminiscent of Daumier and George Grosz, dominated his work in the thirties, and made him one of the most abrasive and effective pictorial satirists of the day. The Senate, the lithograph shown here, is typical of this style. 24 Hirsch's great facility won him critical attention very early in his student years, and his career has flourished without interruption since then. Although his realism is readily accessible to a wide public, Hirsch typically endows it with a subtle strangeness bordering on the surreal. His subjects cover a broad range, but invariably they contain humanity, either in situations involving political or social issues, or in single figures or groups caught in enigmatic moods or relationships. His technique as a realist tends to be more painterly than photographic, well within the tradition of The Eight. Hirsch is also well known for his drawings and prints. Bom in Nya< at the New Yor visit to Paris, h as a graphic art came slowly, b solid reputatior Modem Art me Although alii movement. Ho] themes and ima identical in mo< Almost always, waiting, within and structure g ®°numentality ^d’tionalists S ehisd^th, Respective of encored He ^1*2 �Hhe exhibition, Hinsch tradition of his mantor Ihia he received his first art Useum School before moving I school. In critical attention very pis career has flourished I Although his realism is lie, Hirsch typically endows Bering on the surreal. His lit invariably they contain Ivolving political or social pups caught in enigmatic Inique as a realist tends to Lphic, well within the | also well known for his EDWARD HOPPER (1882-1967) Bom in Nyack, New York. Hopper studied under Henri at the New York School of Art from 1900 to 1906. After a visit to Paris, he returned to New York and made his living as a graphic artist between 1915 and 1923. Recognition came slowly, but by the early thirties, he had achieved a solid reputation as a painter. In 1933, the Museum of Modem Art mounted his first retrospective. Although allied with the American Scene (or Regionalist) movement. Hopper's paintings transcended specific regional themes and images. His deserted rural roadsides were identical in mood and style to his deserted urban hotels. Almost always, they involved a spirit of solitude and waiting, within a simple place. A strong sense of pattern and structure gave his austere realism an almost abstract monumentality which appealed to modernists as well as traditionalists. Hopper's reputation has continued to grow since his death, and the Whitney Museum's major retrospective of 1980 (now traveling to Europe)* has only imderscored Hopper's position as one of America's most important and revered artists. ROCKWELL KENT (1882-1971) Kent was born in Tarrytown, New York. He studied with Henri, as well as with Chase, Miller, and Thayer. He is better known as an illustrator and printmaker than as a painter, and is particularly revered for his wood engravings. Despite occasional flirtations with modernist styles, he remained throughout most of his career a conservative artist, a preserver of heroic romanticism as manifested in the ruggedness and grandeur of the American landscape. His best work was bold and direct in concept, clean and spare in design. His lesser work always maintained an appealing decorativeness, often reminiscent of Art Deco design. Kent was an avid supporter of radical social and political movements (he was awarded the Lenin Peace Prize in Moscow in 1967), and used his art to communicate readily understood images of noble humanity and epic nature. His utopian vision remained curiously detached from the nitty-gritty spirit of the Ash-Can school, however. Because of the comprehensiveness of the Whitney show, we were unable to obtain a characteristic painting by Hopper. 25 �REGINALD MARSH (1898-1954) GEORGE L. K. MORRIS (1905-1975) BARNETT NEWN Marsh was born in Paris of American parents and grew up in New Jersey. As art editor of the Yale Record, then staff artist for Vanity Fair and the New 'York Daily News, Marsh had developed a pungent naturalistic style even before he entered the Art Students League in 1926 to study with Sloan, Luks, and Miller. A native of New York City, Morris attended Yale University before entering the Art Students League, where he worked under Sloan and Miller. His radical artistic spirit took him to Paris for further study with Leger and Ozenfant, as well as an intimate association with the continental avant-garde of the thirties. He edited two important modernist art journals in Paris, The Miscellany (1929-31) and Plastique (1937-39). With the outbreak of World War II, he returned to America permanently, and joined the faculty of the League in 1943-44. Newman, like G.Lj City in 1905 and stud he attended from 192 Newman's immediate! mainstream. He work from 1927 to 1937, aJ school before he turn! Marsh's concern for the common man, which also revealed itself in radical political sympathies, was manifested in an art filled with images of the working classes and their urban environment. Street scenes, subway cars, and Coney Island crowds were typical themes. He was a fine and facile draftsman and printmaker, and, in painting, he preferred tempera and watercolor, which suited small-scale illustration and spontaneity. His stylized and animated realism became readily identifiable, and made him an urban counterpart to the rural regionalist painters. Marsh stands as one of the most prolific and bouyant interpreters of American life in the twenties and thirties. Although Morris himself was not among the major artistic innovators of his day, he was an important spokesman and catalyst for the modernist cause, and played a significant role in America's assimilation of European trends prior to the war. He was one of the founders of the American Abstract Artists in 1936, (and its president from 1948 to 1950), in which capacity he helpe prepare the ground for the revolutionary developments in American art which followed the war. Under the influence with "automatic" drai "cosmic landscapes" 1 first Abstract Express Motherwell, and sooi spokesmen. His austa began in 1948, and J such as the creation. | large, spare, and flat Color-Field and Mini! seventies. 1 �R 7 4 1975) BARNETT NEWMAN (1905-1970) attended Yale ents League, where radical artistic spirit h Leger and ation with the He edited two -is, The Miscellany ( the outbreak of Newman, like G.L.K. Morris, was bom in New York City in 1905 and studied under Sloan at the League, which he attended from 1922 to 1927. But, unlike Morris, Newman's immediate course was not into the avant-garde mainstream. He worked in his father's garment business from 1927 to 1937, and occasionally taught art in high school before he turned to a full-time career as an artist. permanently, ana 1-44. iong the major n imp°rtant , flst cause, and ^ilati°fnt°he vaS (<S iStS1ancityhehelped capacl y ents ry develops I Under the influence of Surrealism, Newman experimented with "automatic" drawings in 1944, and began a series of "ccsmic landscapes" in 1945. He became associated with the first Abstract Expressionists, such as Gottlieb, Rothko, and Motherwell, and soon became one of their most articulate spokesmen. His austere and mystical "stripe" paintings began in 1948, and were founded upon spiritual themes such as the creation. Newman's canvases grew increasingly large, spare, and flat, and profoundly influenced the Color-Field and Minimalist painters of the sixties and seventies. Man Ray studied architecture and engineering in his native Philadelphia before devoting himself to art. He was a student of Henri, and by 1911 already showed an interest in the more radical trends of the day. After the Armory Show, he began working in a Cubist and Futurist manner. In 1915, he met Marcel Duchamp and became part of that artist's inner circle, along with Francis Picabia, the collector Walter Arensburg, and the photographer-dealer, Alfred Stieglitz. In this company, Ray became one of the premier practitioners of Dada, that radical international movement spawned by World War I and given over to ridicule of all conventionality. His wit and irony, blended with great inventiveness, gave Ray's art its variously humorous, outrageous, and enigmatic character. He worked in all media, and became especially famous for his rayographs (images of objects exposed directly on film without a camera) and his Dada objects. Except for the 1940s, Ray has spent most of his career in Paris, and has taken his place among the major modernists. With his friend Duchamp, Ray has been an important progenitor of recent neo-Dada and Conceptual art. 27 �yi jl hi I i I. 36. MORGAN RUSSELL (1886-1953) Russell was born in New York, and studied with Henri before going to Paris in 1909. There he came under the influence of Matisse, the Cubists, and the Futurists. In 1913, with his fellow American Stanton Macdonald-Wright, he founded the movement called Synchromism, which was based upon the dynamic use of color in abstract compositions. This movement paralleled the contemporary colorism of the French painter Delaunay, but remained entirely distinctive. Russell thus became one of the first Americans to make a significant contribution to modern art at the international level. He brought his synchromist work to America for the Forum Exhibition of 1916, but its influence here was only modest. I Like many other radical artists of his generation, including Picasso and Matisse, Russell returned to a figurative style in the twenties. The two works in the exhibition show his avant-garde style of the teens (represented by one of his small works of that period) and his more traditional manner of the twenties. II I 28 DAVID SMITH (1906-1965) Smith was a native of Decatur, Indiana, and attended colleges in the mid-west and Washington, D.C. before moving to New York in 1926. He studied painting at the League with Sloan and with Jan Matulka, and became a close friend of Stuart Davis. After his painting became increasingly three-dimensional in character, he turned to sculpture in the early thirties. In 1933, inspired by Julio Gonzalez, he began doing welded constructions utilizing scrap iron. Cubist, Constructivist, and Surrealist influences predominated at first. Having worked as a riveter in an auto plant, Smith came naturally to the industrial "heavy metal" work which has become so influential on later sculptors. During the forties and fifties, Smith created spontaneous "drawings in space, comparable to Abstract Expressionist painting. In the late fifties, he turned to thin, vertical totems (which he also rendered in paintings, such as the one shown here). His last phase, evolving in the sixties, included his "Cubf series, dynamic clusters of metal boxes. Smith stands with Calder as one of the most important and influential sculptors of the twentieth century. I �’-1965) Jecatur, Indiana, and attended ad Washington, D.C. before 926. He studied painting at the th Jan Matulka, and became a is. After his painting became anal in character, he turned to ies. In 1933, inspired by Julio welded constructions utilizing uctivist, and Surrealist influences ’ter in an auto plant. Smith came "heavy metal" work which has iter sculptors. During the forties, pontaneous "drawings in.space, pressionist painting, n ertical totems (w 1C His last as the one/kov^?br series, “■ inds^th«S»na.»thca*r Sloan and Degas were among the major influences on Soyer, and he shared with them a strong feeling for humanity closely and spontaneously observed. His portraits and genre pictures are rendered with a simple, atmospheric realism which also embodies subtle moods and, often, dassical structures. The work in this exhibition was one of his last paintings, and reveals these aspects of his style very well. �■I • I ■ I NILES SPENCER (1893-1952) CARL SPRINCHORN (1887-1971) Spencer attended the Rhode Island School of Design in his native state before moving to New York City. At the Ferrer School, he studied with Henri and Bellows. Like Glenn Coleman, Spencer was especially fond of the architectural scene of the city, and went even farther in translating it into a Cubist image. Spencer's modernist vision was at first characterized by a static, cubist simplicity, virtually devoid of living things. Later, the blocky forms were flattened into juxtaposed planes suggestive of the austerest works of Juan Gris and Stuart Davis. These simple but carefully organized paintings took on a quiet energy and sophistication of design often lacking in the earlier works. (Both phases are exhibited here). A native of Sweden, Sprinchom came to the United States in 1903 with the intention of studying art with Robert Henri, whose reputation had become widespread. He worked with Henri until 1910, and managed that artist's school for several years. He participated in the Armory Show of 1913. In the twenties, he directed the New Gallery which promoted young American and French modernists, but for much of his life, he traveled widely in this country and abroad. Spencer was especially fascinated by industrial scenes, to which his style was well suited. He joined other American industrial painters, such as Charles Sheeler, Charles Demuth, and Ralston Crawford in this respect, as well as in his rather precisionist aesthetic. 30 Seeking inspiration in nature, Sprinchorn developed vigorous, expressionist style, well-exemplified in the work displayed here. Like his friends Marsden Hartley and Rockwell Kent, he had a special fondness for the rugged landscape and outdoor life of Maine. Boldly sketched loggers and fisherman often inhabited his dynamic and rough-hewn landscapes. Though he resided in America for most of his adult life, Sprinchom's art bears a powerful Nordic stamp. The influences of Edvard Munch, the German Expressionists, and Scandinavian legend and poetry are all apparent, but from these, Sprinchom fashioned a distinctive and vital style. �I 1 1000178354 __H1LKES_COLLEGE library II �� Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Sordoni Art Gallery Exhibition Programs, 1973-present Description An account of the resource Exhibition programs created by the Sordoni Art Gallery from 1973 to the present. Digitized by Wilkes University Archives interns, Zachary Mendoza and Sophia Kruspha. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource The Sordoni Art Gallery Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Wilkes University Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Sordoni Art Gallery Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1973-present Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Wilkes University retains copyright of these exhibition programs. Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Exhibition programs, flyers, and calendars. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1981 April 12-May 14 Students of the Eight: American Masters ca.1910-ca.1960 Subject The topic of the resource Exhibition programs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Sordoni Art Gallery; Wilkes University Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Sordoni Art Gallery; Wilkes University Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1981 April 12-May 17 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Type The nature or genre of the resource Exhibition Book https://omeka.wilkes.edu/omeka/files/original/60aa467af24f4e4982e47f226e420352.pdf cc85474eaffb94edbe1f9d52b7bdc820 PDF Text Text SORE 5A ND237 G35P3 1995 £'2 P R G E S : Self-Portraits �PAUL GEORGES: Self-Portraits I January 22-March 5, 1995 Catalogue Essay by Stanley I Grand t.S. h.r.LtYLidhA'7 WILKES UNIVERSITY WILKES-BARRE Pi Sordoni Art Gallery / Wilkes University / Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania / ^1995 �an fflljrl! ACKNOWLEDGMENTS X 4 ill ARCHIVES i 'w, I; This exhibition reflects the contributions of numerous individuals and organizations. I would like to express my gratitude to Paul and Lisette Georges; I have benefited greatly from their patience, assistance, and hospitality over the years. The same is true of Professor James M. Dennis. Yvette Georges Deeton, manager of the Paul Georges Studio, has been involved with this exhibition from its genesis; her sugges­ tions, comments, and criticisms have been invaluable. 1 also wish to thank Christopher Deeton, who framed the paintings and prepared them for shipment; Ken Showell for photographing the paintings; Arthur Mones for the photograph of Paul Georges; and William O’Reilly of Salander-O’Reilly Galleries, Inc., for arranging the transportation of the paintings. All the paintings in the exhibition are courtesy of SalanderO’Reilly Galleries, Inc., New York City. John Beck designed the catalogue, whit li wa, primed by Llewellyn & McKanc, Inc., Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Major support for this publication came front the Richard A Flonheim Art Fund. Their early and generou, a-si made this project possible. This exhibition and publication arc ,upp->rtd b. _■ grant from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Cour,.:i -:i ti/r A",. “Paul Georges: Self Portraits” exemplifies the .pirit i/the Sordoni Art Gallery’s “Contemporary Masters” exhiiu’ivn' I’i.e.e one-person, mini-retrospectives of older art:,:, fo u on a particu­ lar theme or aspect of a life long commitment to making ar:. Despite the vagaries of critical and popular support, the : artist. have persisted in following their own visions. The', have remained productive during lean times. They have created an impressive body of work. They have earned the respect of their fellow artist- Paul Georges is one of them. -S1 G [ J ■Lt | ft 1 ' c I? T J VW kt Paul Georges, New York City, December 12,1994 �I I.k designed the catalogue, which was printed by IcKane, Inc., Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. pport for this publication came from the Richard A. Fund. Their early and generous assistance made this le. This exhibition and publication are supported by a Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Council on the Ans. oiges: Self Portraits” exemplifies the spirit of the Gallery’s “Contemporary Masters” exhibitions. These ini-retrospectives of older artists focus on a particuspect of a life-long commitment to making art. garies of critical and popular support, these artists in following their own visions. They have remained ring lean times. They have created an impressive body have earned the respect of their fellow artists. Paul : of them. —S I G Paul Georges, New York City, December 12,1994 c. �PAUL GEORGES : Self-Portraits Stanley I Grand TTn a 1969 interview, Paul Georges recalled that a close encounter I with death during World War II freed him to become an JL artist.1 Surviving an enemy attack that left many of his friends and comrades dead and realizing that he too “should have been killed,” Georges “just assumed from then on I was free but I didn’t know how to act on that basis, I didn’t know how to act as a free man.”2 After his discharge from the Army, Georges acted on his battlefront epiphany by becoming a painter. Becoming an artist required that he discover his own means of expression. The “Triumph of American Painting,” as Irving Sandler called the success of the original New York School painters, was a mixed blessing for younger artists like Georges who began showing in the mid-1950s. Georges has observed that Abstract Expressionism for me represented freedom in the early 50s and those early painters were heroes, but it seemed complete to me so I had to change. Those painters who continued in that style seemed like false painters? Now seventy-one years old, Georges has been painting self­ portraits since the 1940s. Looking at the works in this exhibition, which span five decades, one , „is .struck . cby- Georges - ’ inventiveness: he refuses to adopt a narrow (■'••• efimtion of the self-portrait. Instead, his self-portraits freely incorporate and combine narrative, landscape, > interior, still-life, portraiture, and allegorical elements to produce paint­ ings that transcend mere likeness. As Carter Ratcliff noted in 1983: The ease with which Georges moves across boundaries, the apparent insouciance with which he leaps from category to category, has taken on, over the years, an additional weight of meaning. The very' nature of his art, the wide reach of his style, begins to look like an allegory of the freedom a painter is able to claim if only the will to do so is present.’ Georges’ initial experiments with a modernist vocabulary are reflected in Self-Portrait, c. 1946-47 (Figure 1) and Untitled (Artist with Palette and Brush), c. 1949 (Figure 2). In Self-Portrait Georges, who studied with Hans Hofmann in 1947, uses a “push and pull” of colors to establish the picture plane. Painted in Paris while Georges was a student at the Atelier Fernand Leger, Untitled (Artist with Palette and Brush) shows the artist in a shallow, flattened space. The face, which combines three-quarter and frontal views, is clearly indebted to Picasso. Color plays a minimal role; indeed the linear quality of the work is more akin to drawing than to painting. Despite the Cubist style, which minimizes the likeness of the person portrayed, the prominent bulbous nose clearly belongs to Georges and allows us to see the painting as a self-portrait. In 1952, Georges and his wife Lisette, the daughter ofphotographer Erwin Blumenfeld, left Paris for New York City, where they rented an apartment on 8th Street, in the heart of the art world. He was twenty-nine years old. In New York, Georges experimented with a number of differ­ ent styles as he replaced his Cubist with a more plastic manner. Early critics including Frank O’Hara (1954) and Parker Tyler (1955), who noted his “protean way of painting,” commented on his ability to work simultaneously in several different styles? Reviewing an early solo exhibition, Laverne George (1955) obser that “The surprising thing about this range of period styles is tha however much on first glance one would think he’d stumbled on group show, after a while a single personality can be felt behind I uninhibited diversity.”6 Recalling these early years, Georges wrote as follows: I did not search for a style, that is why my paintings were, and are, so disparate. I wanted to be able to speak in the language of painting. In order to do so, I had to accept painting’s limitations, which are also, as Georges Braque said, its strengths. Accepting the limitations of painting allows me to be free? Georges’ maturation as an artist coincided with a profound change in his personal life. The war and subsequent art training had extended his apprenticeship well beyond early adulthood. He and Lisette had put off starting a family, but within weeks of his thirtieth birthday in 1953, Lisette became pregnant. Seeing in his wife’s fecund form a new ideal of feminine beauty, Georges paint what he has called his first “realistic” painting: Pregnant Lisette, 1'. (not in exhibition). Georges quickly and dramatically explored th potential of his new realist style in Self-Portrait Green, 1955 (Figure 3). Self-Portrait Green signals Georges’ new freedom to step beyo the limitations of a single style and to draw inspiration from the greater tradition of Western painting. Georges’ “return to tradi­ tion,” however, reflected his assimilation of Abstract Expression­ ism. As Fairfield Porter wrote in 1961: For all of its peculiarity, “American-type” painting contains within itsel just as Impressionism did, a sort of assimilation of tradition. This assim tion of tradition comes about through a reaction with the deepest, most inexpressible force of tradition, and it creates a new artistic capital. In st an artistic capital a significant conservative “return to tradition” can oct �kails cross boundaries, the apparent category to category, has taken on, f meaning. The very nature of his art, ook like an allegory of the freedom a 1 to do so is present.4 with a modernist vocabulary are ' (Figure 1) and Untitled (Artist gure 2). In Self-Portrait Geoiges, in 1947, uses a “push and pull” >lane. Painted in Paris while er Fernand Leger, Untitled (Artist irtist in a shallow, flattened space, uarter and frontal views, is clearly minimal role; indeed the linear o drawing than to painting, inimizes the likeness of the bulbous nose clearly belongs to minting as a self-portrait. e Lisette, the daughter of photogis for New York City, where they , in the heart of the art world. He mented with a number of dififert with a more plastic manner. Early critics including Frank O’Hara (1954) and Parker Tyler (1955), who noted his “protean way of painting,” commented on his ability to work simultaneously in several different styles.5 Reviewing an early solo exhibition, Laverne George (1955) observed that “The surprising thing about this range of period styles is that however much on first glance one would think he’d stumbled on a group show, after a while a single personality can be felt behind the uninhibited diversity.”6 Recalling these early years, Georges wrote as follows: Georges’ paintings represent such a return. But tradition is available to him, here in New York, because it was first assimilated by the New York School, and the form in which it is available is characteristic of this abstract school.8 In Self-Portrait Green, the artist contemplates a canvas. The “tough guy” pose, with the thumb of the left hand hooked over the belt, contrasts with the sensitivity of the face. Although the front of the painting that he studies is not visible to the viewer, one can infer from the notation “TOP” on the stretcher that the work is I did not search for a style, that is why my paintings were, and are, so either non-objective or that the stretcher once held a non-objective disparate. I wanted to be able to speak in the language of painting. In painting. The back of the canvas and its placement in the composi­ order to do so, I had to accept painting’s limitations, which are also, as tion recall such well-known works as Velazquez’s Las Mininas Geoiges Braque said, its strengths. Accepting the limitations of painting (1656), Goya’s Self-Portrait Painting in the Studio (1785) and The allows me to be free.7 Family of Charles IV, with Goya Painting Them (1800-01), or Cezanne’s Georges’ maturation as an artist coincided with a profound Self-Portrait with Palette and Easel (c. 1885-87). The dark tonalities change in his personal life. The war and subsequent art training and loose expressive brushwork also recall Velazquez and Goya, had extended his apprenticeship well beyond early adulthood. He while the lighting, which comes from the upper left, evokes Rem­ and Lisette had put off starting a family, but within weeks of his brandt’s divine light. thirtieth birthday in 1953, Lisette became pregnant. Seeing in his Reflecting an unmistakably modern sensibility, however, wife’s fecund form a new ideal of feminine beauty, Georges painted Geoiges flattened the picture in several ways. He turned the stretcher what he has called his first “realistic” painting: Pregnant Lisette, 1954 almost parallel to the picture plane to create a shallow space and counter any tendency to perspectival recession. His painterly (not in exhibition). Georges quickly and dramatically explored the technique, which blurs figure-ground relationships, further flattens potential of his new realist style in Self-Portrait Green, 1955 (Figure 3). Self-Portrait Green signals Georges’ new freedom to step beyond the picture. Finally, he uses letters and words to emphasize the surface, as in the Synthetic Cubism of Picasso and Braque. the limitations of a single style and to draw inspiration from the The words, however, should not be read solely as a formal greater tradition of Western painting. Georges’ “return to tradi­ device. The inclusion of the artist’s name, home address (231 East tion,” however, reflected his assimilation of Abstract Expression­ 11th Street in New York), and hanging notation indicate that the ism. As Fairfield Porter wrote in 1961: painter is an active member of the New York art community whose works are included in contemporary exhibitions. Indeed, Georges For all of its peculiarity, “American-type” painting contains within itself, had begun to receive confirmation of his status as an artist. Clem­ just as Impressionism did, a sort of assimilation of tradition. This assimila­ ent Greenberg, for example, had included him in “Emerging tion of tradition comes about through a reaction with the deepest, most inexpressible force of tradition, and it creates a new artistic capital. In such Talent,” an important group exhibition at the Kootz Gallery in “significant1 consemuv7“return to tradition” can occur. January 1954, and the Hansa Gallery had scheduled his first onean artistic capital a < „ �man exhibition in New York for November. Althoug h tion never took place-Georges removed his pain mgs fro gallery prior to the opening-Frank O’Hara saw them an , cally gave Georges’ non-exhibition a favorable review In the years following the abortive Hansa Gafiery experie ’ Georges continued to refine his naturalistic style. Like Cour e The Painter’s Studio: A RealAllegoiy Summing up Seven Years oj My Life as an Artist (1854-55), with which it shares many similarities, Georges’ Artist, Lisette and Paulette in Studio, 1956 (Figure 4) is a reallife allegory that summarizes a stage in his aesthetic development. One of his largest paintings to date, Artist, Lisette and Paulette shows a new confidence and^rawto. Georges has divided the composition into three quasi-equal parts that represent the artist­ creator, the work of art, and the artist’s inspiration. Much as the overall warm tonality (obtained by using a Maroger medium) unifies the work, the tripartite composition proclaims the unity of his life and art and the equivalence of the generative and imaginative. On the left stands Paulette, Georges’ two-year-old daughter, whose name is the diminutive and feminine version of his own. She raises her left hand to her mouth; her right hand rests lightly on her father’s arm. This touch, combined with a continuous, encompassing contour line that flows from Georges’ head and shoulder links her unmistakably to her father. Fie is her creator just as he is about to create a work of art. Georges himself is seated. His right hand, holding a piece of charcoal, makes the transition from the left to the composition’s center. The painting portrays the moment before creation, before he begins to draw, in order to emphasize the mental over the manual activity. Paulette’s reflexive gesture of surprise pays witness to the miracle in progress. The isolated placement of the artist’s hand just above the center of the canvas underscores that the miracle can become tangible only through the intercession of the artist. On the right, Lisette, nude, sits on an elevated platform covered with drapery that cascades from the corner above her head. Mother of his child and muse to his art, she rests her crossedl ■ on a box or crate as she looks at her husband and child. pIc.£ a modicum of modesty, a light cloth crosses one thigh. Lis^f nudity contrasts with the geometric forms of the easel and dra^:paper and suggests the familiar nature-culture, sensual-inteUectv-: dichotomy. In 1956, the year preceding the completion of/frw, Paulette, Georges published “A Painter Looks at a) the Nude,b) Corot” in which he discussed the difficulties in painting a nude Devious means are required to render her il one wants to show j nuk truly. She must be free in space, she must belong to it, she must relate to it. If one thinks of her as an objec t all is lost, il one does not thin! of l>s as an object all is lost. There is the same contradiction in paintingo!,:. kind as there is in woman herself. If one paints the relations one dotsr i have the essence, and if one paints the thing the essence eludes you.’1 Georges’ insistence that the nude must be both “free in spits' and “must belong to it” became his major formal concern. Ht wanted neither to create “allover” Abstract Expressionist space, in which the figure-ground relationship blurred, nor traditional paintings, in which the figure and ground were clearly distinct an' separate. Rather he wanted to combine both movement and fom in an ambiguous, constantly changing “orbital" relationship. In orbital space, the forms circle around each other like satellites in constantly changing trajectories; the relationship between forms remains ambiguous, open and “capable of charge depending on how you see it.”11 Orbital space is the opposite or perspectival space, which locates forms in rational, measurable. s»tic> and closed pictorial relationships. Self-Portrait, 1959 (Figure 5), which was shown in his l’j portrait exhibition at the Great Jones Gallery, demonstrate! — space. Here the artist, holding a brush, sits on a bentwood co­ Using a loaded brush and painting wet-into-wet in the manner, Georges subordinates details to create a more genei^, ’;5p.- „i r t >■rather than individualized, self-portrait. Georges’ express- work and the monochromatic palette create an . relationship that integrates the figure into the o one is uncertain where the figure ends and the g neither figure nor ground loses its identity. For Georges, grappling with the contradict picture surface and the picture plane, between si between finite form and expressive movement I just the classic formal problem of modernism.' dictions that he encountered in attempting to c echoed the difficulties inherent in trying to live In the early 1960s, Georges made the trans value painting to color. This change is dramatn compares Standing Self-Portrait tn Studio, 1959 ( Self-Portrait, 1962-63 (Figure 7), One notes furl learned to animate his figure in the latter comp contrapposto and by imparting a sense of mon artjst suddenly looks up.' As Georges perfected his formal skills, he preoccupied with the question: “Formal for what?” I say to myself. ... It seems to : to be formal, is to say something. If you have noth) we got where we are.”12 In Georges’ mind formal innovation had, replaced content: Ail the “isms” of the 20th century—Futurism, Absti as well as Pop and Op An fare) rea]]y about prwei, k,™-™ m,. — .i,.-, i,.—__inalienator ­ become the ends.... m When this happens There has to be some urgent need.... I think none were trying to speak about our needs. That’s what until about a hundred jo years ago?’ �■ Mother of his child and muse to his art, she rests her crossed le on a box or crate as she looks at her husband and child. Provmf a modicum of modesty, a light cloth crosses one thigh. Lisette’s"8 nuditv contrasts with the geometric forms of the easel a nd drawin paper’and suggests the familiar nature-culture, sensual-intellectUal8 dichotomy. In 1956, the year preceding the completion ofArtist, Lisette and Parity Georges published “A Painter Looks at a) the Nude, b) 1- Corot” in which he discussed the difficulties in painting a nude: Devious means are required to render her if one wants to show a nude truly. She must be free in space, she must belong to it, she must relate to it If one thinks of her as an object all is lost, if one does not think of her as an object all is lost There is the same contradiction in painting of this kind as there is in woman herself. It one paints the relations one does not ha® the essence, and if one paints the thing the essence eludes you.10 Georges’ insistence that the nude must be both “free in space” and “must belong to it” became his major formal concern. He wanted neither to create “allover” Abstract Expressionist space, in which the figure-ground relationship blurred, nor traditional paintings, in which the figure and ground were clearly- distinct and separate. Rather he wanted to combine both movement and form tn an ambiguous, constantly changing “orbital” relationship. In orbital space, the forms circle around each other like satellites in constandy changing trajectories; the relationship between forms remains ambiguous, open and “capable of change depending on. how you see it”i! Orbital space is the opposite of perspectival space, which locates forms in rational, measurable, static, and closed pictorial relationships. his 1960 self Self-Portrait, 1959 (Figure 5), which was shown in --------. ­ Gallery, demonstrates orbita orbital portrait exhibition at the Great Jones Gallery', space. Here the artist, holding a brush, sits on a bentwood chair. Using a loaded brush and painting wet-into-wet in the Venetian manner, Georges subordinates details to create a more generalize , rather than individualized, self-portrait. Georges’ expressive brus - work and the monochromatic palette create an ambiguous spatial relationship that integrates the figure into the overall composition: one is uncertain where the figure ends and the ground begins, yet neither figure nor ground loses its identity. For Georges, grappling with the contradiction between the picture surface and the picture plane, between surface and depth, between finite form and expressive movement became more than just the classic formal problem of modernism. The pictorial contra­ dictions that he encountered in attempting to create free paintings echoed the difficulties inherent in trying to live as a free man. In the early 1960s, Georges made the transition from tonal or value painting to color. This change is dramatically apparent if one compares Standing Self-Portrait in Studio, 1959 (Figure 6) with Seated Self-Portrait, 1962-63 (Figure 7). One notes further how Georges has learned to animate his figure in the latter composition by means of contrapposto and by' imparting a sense of momentariness, as the artist suddenly looks up. As Georges perfected his formal skills, he became increasingly preoccupied with the question: “Formal for what?” I say to myself.... It seems to me the only reason . . to be formal, is to say something. If you have nothing to say, that’s how we got where we are.”12 In Georges’ mind formal innovation had, unfortunately, replaced content: All the “isms” of the 20th century—Futurism, Abstract Expressionism ... as well as Pop and Op Art [are] really about process.... The means have become the ends.. .. When this happens alienation and cynicism set in. There has to be some urgent need.... I think none of us are artists unless we’re trying to speak about our needs. That’s what art has been about... until about a hundred years ago.14 By the end of the 1960s, Georges felt an “urgent need” to address some of the dynamic events that characterized that turbu­ lent decade. One such painting is My Kent State, 1970-71 (Figure 10). As the American military presence in Viet Nam expanded during the 1960s, so did the domestic antiwar movement. When President Nixon ordered the invasion of Cambodia in the spring of 1970, his actions provoked widespread protests, including one at Kent State University, which ended tragically on May 4, when Ohio National Guardsmen fired on a group of students, killing four and wounding nine. Georges expressed his outrage in a number of paintings. In Aly Kent State, many figures are compressed into a shallow space, suggesting crush and panic, chaos and fright Georges himself appears in the center of the composition, kneeling and restraining his muse, who attempts to flee. The artist and muse are surrounded by National Guardsmen, clouds of tear gas, and on the ground, the foreshortened body of a dead student whose blood merges with the painted red border. The artist’s pose was appropriated or transposed from a photograph by John P. Filo that appeared in The Neto York Times on May 5, 1970. One of the best known and most powerful photographs of the 1970s, it depicts an anguished young woman kneeling beside a slain student. On the painting’s right, Georges has represented Richard Nixon and Vice President Spiro Agnew. Although NLxon turns away from the violence, his blood-covered hands emphasize his guile Georges, of course, is not unique among modern artists in responding to shocking or tragic contemporary' events. Indeed, My Kent State belongs to a long tradition of particularized protest paintings that include Goya’s Third ofMay, 1808 (1814), Gericault’s The Raft of the Medusa (1819), Manet’s The Execution ofMaximillian (1868), Ben Shahn’s The Passion ofSacco and Vanzetti (1931-32), and Picasso’s Guernica (1937). The closest parallel, however, is with Philip Evergood’s An American Tragedy (1937), which commemo­ rates a 1937 Memorial Day clash between strikers and police at the Republic Steel Company mill in Gary, Indiana. Both works are �• ’«•■ * •□■Ml responses to specific incidents. Both artists painted themselves; as participants in the events, although neither had been at the scene Both artists used news photographs in their compositions, u ous compositional similarities exist as well, most particularly the centralized man and woman, the massed agents of authority, and the placement of the dead. Finally, both use an idealized image of woman. For Evergood, woman is not only a protector of man, but also a symbol of new life amidst the chaos, repression, and death. Georges’ muse similarly represents the powers of creation, if not procreation. Afi' Kent State should not be read simply as a particularized protest. Rather, Georges viewed the killings at Kent State as a massive attack on American civic freedoms. The constitutional rights of citizens to speak freely, to assemble peacefully, to petition their government, to receive a fair trial (instead of a summary execution), and to avoid involuntary servitude (the draft) seemed to have died in a fusillade. Georges, for whom freedom is the primary value, felt that he must condemn the government repression. In addition to speaking out against political repression, Georges also challenged the prevailing critical viewpoint that considered figurative art inferior to abstract art. As part of his rebellion against a new “mainstream” orthodoxy, he vigorously sought to expand the exhibition opportunities for representational artists through his activities with the Alliance of Figurative Artists, which he helped to found in February 1969. Modeled on the Eighth-Street Club, which Geoiges had frequented in the early 1950s, the Alliance provided a Friday-evening forum where artists could present work, lecture, receive critical feedback, and partici­ pate in panel discussions. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, many of the figurative artists active in the Alliance met at the Cedar Tavern, which was once the favorite hangout of the first generation New York School artists. Georges portrayed several of the new regulars in Cedar Tavern, 1973-74 (Figure 14). Seated at the table, clockwise from the lower left corner, are Georges (wearing a grey sweater with leather elbow patches), Sam Thurston, Anthony Santuoso, and Marty Pachek. Standing between Pachek and Paul Resika (bearded and wearing a red sweater), Camille (Carmella) Nandanici serves coff= Continuing around the table are Aristodimos Kaldis (an artist Georges met in 1947), an unidentified young woman, and Jim Wilson. Behind the table, Howard Kalish and Jacob (Jack) Silberman are seated at the bar. The tiny head to the right represents Mike Berg. Anthony Siani (who along with Silberman sued Genre. for libel alleging that he had depicted them as “violent criminals’ in the Mugging of the Muse [1972-74, not in exhibition]) appears standing directly above the waitress’s tray. Interior at Walker, 1972 (Figure 11) and SelfPortrait with Cabinet, 1972-74 (Figure 13) document two domestic views. In the first, the artist embraces his,wife Lisette. Th*. ,e^n8 is the family’s loft, purchased in 1970, on Walker Street in the Tribeca area of Manhattan. The second shows the artist leaning against a china cabinet that is still to be seen in the loft’s dining area. Together these paintings celebrate, on one level, the painter’s attainment of financial security for the first time in his life. The following year, 1973, Georges turned fifty and began Fantasy About Freedom #/, 1973-76 (Figure 15). Here we see the somewhat overweight, middle-aged artist gamboling on the heath with three young women who, like the artist, have abandoned their bathing suits. This lyrical pastoral, a combination of personal daydream and art historical references, recalls Georges’ earlier paintings on the theme of the Three Graces. Georges frequently employs caricature as an essential visual device. The element of humor associated with caricature gives a droll cast to the image, prevents it from becoming excessively earnest, and in consequence, strengthens its aesthetic power. E. H. Gombrich observed that “The invention of portrait caricature presupposes the theoretical discovery of the difference between likeness and equivalence.”15 Georges understands this difference completely. By means of isolation, generalization, simplified exaggeration, caricature schematizes details and removes them the realm of the particular to the allegorical. Thus caricature changes Georges’ Fantasy from a study of the artist’s physio?150®' or character into a more generalized image of the attist libera from the restraints of propriety and decotum. Or. as Richard Brilliant has noted, the role assumed by the artist tends to “d place” rather than “define" the character of the individual. Typically, Georges’ self-portraits depict the artist in a po manner of affirmative freedom. They are not preoccupied wii analysis, introspection, or despair. Art is his weapon in rhe d< of a civilization whose primary virtue is freedom Although 1 holds these values sincerely, his use of caricature gives the co: tion an irreverent, unmistakably modern feeling. In formal terms, Fantasy is constructed to demonstrate [ rial freedom: the vast sky above the low horizon creates a lev feeling because, according to Georges, “everything above the horizon line opens up."1 (His use of a low horizon is seen it Portrait in Studio, 1982 [Figure 16] as well.) This not only cre< “architecture of openness," but also liberates the figures by si etting them against the sky.1 Similar effects are found in Rei sance and Baroque illusionist ic. ceilings. The placement of the small figure on the left, in an indi nate space, also demonstrates pictorial freedom. Georges has observed that in Bruegel’s Hunter:, in the Sn»w(l565): You see large figures on the left moving over the hill, and you see 1: figures at the bottom right. To gel to these little figures you have to down instead of up. Normally in perspective, something that’s beh something else is above it-a closer chair is lower, the further one n higher—but paintings have to resolve themselves on the wall. If yoc what is nearer up high, you < an oppose the rule at the same time a obeying it.'' By situating the smaller figure to the left and below the cavorting nudes, the artist counters any tendency toward per tival recession, as it is countered in the Bruegel. Instead ofgr °ack the eye is drawn down, underscoring the mteg Pp™^n°_“fu^acc'r. Representative of his mature self-portraits of the artist-; artist, Self-Portrait in the Studio, c. 1983 (Figure 17) portrays C ’ �ek. Standing between Pachek and Paul Resika (bearded and ing a red sweater), Camille (Carmella) Nandanici serves coffe inuing around the table are Aristodimos Kaldis (an artist e' ges met in 1947), an unidentified young woman, and Jim ,n. Behind the table, Howard Kalish and Jacob (Jack) Silberare seated at the bar. The tiny head to the right represents Berg. Anthony Siani (who along with Silberman sued Geor5, ”X« bel alleging that he had depicted them as “violent criminals” .‘Mugging of the Muse [1972-74, not in exhibition]) appears ing directly above the waitress’s tray. Interior at Walker, 1972 (Figure 11) and Self-Portrait with .’et, 1972-74 (Figure 13) document two domestic views. In the the artist embraces his wife Lisette. The setting is the family’s mrchased in 1970, on Walker Street in the Tribeca area of rattan. The second shows the artist leaning against a china et that is still to be seen in the loft’s dining area. Together paintings celebrate, on one level, the painter’s attainment of rial security for the first time in his life. The following year, 1973, Georges turned fifty and began y About Freedom #1, 1973-76 (Figure 15). Here we see the vhat overweight, middle-aged artist gamboling on the beach hree young women who, like the artist, have abandoned their ig suits. This lyrical pastoral, a combination of personal ram and art historical references, recalls Georges’ earlier ngs on the theme of the Three Graces. Georges frequently employs caricature as an essential visual . The element of humor associated with caricature gives a :ast to the image, prevents it from becoming excessively t, and in consequence, strengthens its aesthetic power. E. H. rich observed that “The invention of portrait caricature >poses the theoretical discovery of the difference between ss and equivalence.”15 Georges understands this difference etely.By means of isolation, generalization, simplification, or ration, caricature schematizes details and removes them frorn study of the artist’s physiognomy or character into a more generalized image of the artist liberated from the restraints of propriety and decorum. Or, as Richard Brilliant has noted,, the role assumed by the artist tends to “dis­ place” rather than “define” the character of the individual.16 Typically, Georges’ self-portraits depict the artist in a positive manner of affirmative freedom. They are not preoccupied with selfanalysis, introspection, or despair. Art is his weapon in the defense of a civilization whose primary virtue is freedom. Although he holds these values sincerely, his use of caricature gives t'the composition an irreverent, unmistakably modern feeling. In formal terms, Fantasy is constructed to demonstrate picto­ rial freedom: the vast sky above the low horizon creates a levitous feeling because, according to Georges, “everything above the horizon line opens up/•”17 (His use of a low horizon is seen in SelfPortrait in Studio, 1982 [Figure 16] as well.) This not only creates an “architecture of openness,” but also liberates the figures by silhou­ etting them against the sky.17 Similar effects are found in Renais­ sance and Baroque illusionistic ceilings. The placement of the small figure on the left, in an indetermi­ nate space, also demonstrates pictorial freedom. Geoiges has observed that in Bruegel’s Hunters in the Snow (1565): You see large figures on the left moving over the hill, and you see little figures at the bottom right. To get to these little figures you have to go down instead of up. Normally in perspective, something that’s behind something else is above it—a closer chair is lower, the further one is higher—but paintings have to resolve themselves on the wall. If you place what is nearer up high, you can oppose the rule at the same time as obeying it.1’ By situating the smaller figure to the left and below the cavorting nudes, the artist counters any tendency toward perspectival recession, as it is countered in the Bruegel. Instead of going back in space, the eye is drawn down, underscoring the integrity of the painting’s surface. Representative of his mature self-portraits of the artist-asres wearing clean, if casual, clothing. His brush appears to touch one of his own paintings, seen in reverse, hanging on the wall behind the artist. This action compresses and contradicts the illusion of three-dimensionality and creates a figure-ground ambiguity that serves to flatten the picture. The three smaller paintings on the wall behind the artist are reverse images of color reproductions-Balthus’ The Room (1952-54), Mantegna’s Judith and Holofemts (c. 1495), and Velazquez’s Pope Innocent X (1650)—that hang in Georges’ studio. While “true” to optical reality, the reproductions appear reversed because Georges paints his self-portraits by looking in a mirror and not from photographs. In his self-portraits, Georges consistently depicts himself in casual attire. In part this is verisimilitude: he paints in old, casual clothing (note the longevity of the sweater that appears in Standing’ Self-Portrait in Studio, 1959 (Figure 6], Seated Self-Portrait, 1962-63 [Figure 7], and Cedar Tavern, 1973-74 [Figure 14]). By refusing to adopt the sartorial trappings of the middle class (that is the busi­ ness suit), Georges emphasizes his position as an outsider, free to do what he wants, which in his case is to be an artist. Unconcerned with the conventions of dignity and decorum, he is free to paint himself naked (Figure 15), or to be what Sidney Ttllim once called him: a “sentimental vulgarian.”20 The image of the gentleman-artist that Georges emphatically rejects evolved over five centuries. Discussing Velazquez’s Las Meninas in the Prado, for example, Jonathan Brown has emphasized the work’s “transcendent social implications-the condition of painting as a liberal, noble art and thus of painters as artists entitled to enjoy the privileges of high social status.”21 Likewise in nineteenth-century' France: Henri Fantin-Latour’s well-known Portrait of Edouard Manet (by 1867) in the Art Institute of Chicago, for example, seems more a likeness of a bourgeois dandy than of a prominent member of the avant-garde. Georges readily adopts the romantic image of the bohemian artist as a schema of freedom. He expects the viewer to recognize the social convention of the bohemian artist and to understand that image’s connotations of freedom. He is not concerned with �the “originality” of the schema, but rather in its ability to convey a I16 m ln\he Studio, 1989-90 (Figure 18) shows the artist standing half of the doorway of his Normandy studio. A strong light falls on ha., his face while shadow obscures the rest. The dark, almost gloomy interior contrasts with the sunny courtyard much as the contem­ plative artist differs from the active workman outside. Although holding a brush, he is not painting. Slightly behind the artist, beneath a picture hanging on the wall, a dog waits patiently on the floor. Further back, a still life of rag, bowl, and bottles sits on a worktable. At the very rear of the studio, a ladder leans against the wall next to a large, unfinished painting. Color plays a fundamental role in this work by maintaining the integrity of the surface and, as such, reflects his early training with Hans Hofmann. Unlike those who view the picture surface as a kind of window onto the world, Hofmann saw the surface as a dynamic equilibrium of competing forces that “push and pull” against each other. In this work, the warm colors appear to push outward or advance while the cool colors recede or pull back. This equipose produces an illusion of space or depth by means of color rather than by perspective. Georges’ view of color recalls Maurice Denis’ famous dictum, at the turn of the century, that “a picture-before being a war-horse, a nude woman, or some sort of anecdote—is essentially a surface covered with colours arranged in a certain order.”22 Georges believes that color is the one thing that an artist can put on the canvas that is not “illusion.” He notes that although the painter can capture the exact hue of a sock or shirt, he can neither recreate threedimensional space nor introduce motion onto a two-dimensional surface. Consequently when perspective, value (light and dark), or movement are used to “solve” a painting, the result invariably’ looks “fake.” Georges obviously does not forbid illusion; however, he subordinates perspective to color. Red, for example, counteracts the recession of the strong diagonal orthogonals. The juxtaposition of small areas of red near the bottom of the painting with a larger on. above also creates a kind of reverse perspective. If one were to draw imaginary lines from the sandals to the top and bottom edges of the red painting in the “background,” the lines would diverge, or open up, instead of converging or closing dow n. This lateral 1. For an extensive discussion ol the issue > raised tn this tmv.sce in, movement, created by color on the surface, counterbalances lineal "Allegories of Freedom tn the Paintings of Patti Georges” (Ph i). T,. ■. University of Wisconsin-Madison. 1993). recession and illusionist ic space. Multiple vanishing points and horizon lines further exacer­ 2. Interview with Karl Fortess, October 1'9,» Archives of Amrmun Ar' bate the sense of ambiguity in the picture. Indeed it is difficult to locate the horizon. We would expect a high horizon line in a 3. Paul Georges to author, December 12, 1994. standing self-portrait like In the Studio since the horizon line 4. Carter Ratcliff, “Paul Georges,"/KAI fcwnal, Fall 1983, p 7. corresponds to the artist’s eye level. The horizon line, however, is neither constant, predictable, nor imitative of reality. 5. F.O’H. [Frank O’Hara), "Paul Georges,November 1954, P. ‘ ■ Georges also uses pastage, the technique associated with P.F. [Parker Tyler|, “Paul Geoijej,” Art New,, November 1955, p. 49. Cezanne and Analytical Cubism, to eliminate the illusion of plana6. Laverne George, “Paul Georges," Arts .Magazine, December 1955, p. 5U recession and to create spatial ambiguity. In In the Studio, aquama­ rine combines the artist’s figure and the blue painting on the wall 7. Paul Georges to author, January 3, 1995. “behind” into a single shape that simultaneously emphasizes the surface and creates Georges’ ambiguous “orbital space." 8. Fairfield Porter, “Art, George,; [he Nature of the Am ,’r. Tradition The Throughout his career, which began professionally in the late Nation, February 11. 1961, p 128. Reprinted tn Fairfield Porter An m Its Oi/n 1940s, Georges has returned again and again to the subject of the Terms: Selected Cntin.m /9.;s t'r/s, editt-: by I'm !■•,,>■.>■ Dua.u . Ci» f artist working in his studio. Picasso’s observation that “One’s work Taplinger, 1979), p. 130. is sort of a diary”25 is particularly true of Georges, 9. F.O’H., “Pau! Georges,” p. 61. NOTES I always work.... Even if I don’t like what I do, 1 don’t judge it.... 1 i“;’ do it and put it away.25 He is not plagued by self-doubt, cynicism, or nihilism as he strives to live as a free man through art. In his self-portraits, Georges asserts the primacy of the individual in a depersonalized industrial society and, further, that freedom cannot exist without individual responsibility. Never the cool, aloofflaneur observing the world go by, Georges engages and transforms his subjects h} means of a sophisticated formal vocabulary. His passionate ptetorial journal records the progress of a private man made public- 10. Paul Georges, “A Painter Looks itj)Thc Nude, b) Corot,’’ An November 1956, p. 40. 11. Ibid. L p. I1 1 Fan Nov 1 Bra Rtvt I Nr 2 I?,;; 2 (Prr 2 I-i 194 12. Paul Georges, ---------moderator-----------------of here Ar* We-----Kga.'1 .a r pare, d . --------- ---February 19,1971 at theAlhar.ce of Figurati.-.-Anr.ts. NrwYork Cny 13. Quoted in Diane Cochrane, “Pau! Georges: Tnr Object 1; the Sub American Artist, September 1974, p. 59. 14. Ibid. 2 �m of the painting with a larger on se perspective. If one were to draw to the top and bottom edges of ind,” the lines would diverge or r closing down. This lateral he surface, counterbalances lineal nd horizon lines further exacere picture. Indeed it is difficult to lect a high horizon line in a 'India since the horizon line el. The horizon line, however, is imitative of reality. i technique associated with to eliminate the illusion of planar biguity. In In the Studio, aquamand the blue painting on the wall simultaneously emphasizes the guous ‘"orbital space.” h began professionally in the late i and again to the subject of the so’s observation that “One’s work NOTES 1. For an extensive discussion of the issues raised in this essay, see my “Allegories of Freedom in the Paintings of Paul Georges” (Ph.D. dissertation, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1993). 2. Interview with Karl Fortess, October 1969. Archives of American Art. 4. Carter Ratcliff, “Paul Georges," ACM Journal, Fall 1983, p. 7. 5. F.O'H. [Frank O’Hara], “Paul Georges,” Art News, November 1954, p. 61. P.T. [Parker Tyler], “Paul Georges,"Art News, November 1955, p. 49. 6. Laverne George, “Paul Georges,” Aris Magazine, December 1955, p. 50. 7. Paul Georges to author, January 3, 1995. 8. Fairfield Porter, “Art, Georges: The Nature of the Artistic Tradition,” The f Nation, February 11, 1961, p. 128. Reprinted in Fairfield Porter, Art in Its Own f Terms: Selected Criticism 1935-1975, edited by Rackstraw Downes (New York: flinger, 1979), p. 130. 9. F.O'H, “Paul Georges,” p. 61. I 17. Paul Georges as member of a panel, “Science Fiction, Myth and Fantasy Fantasy-Moral on the Macabre," held at the Alliance of Figurative Artist- on November 17, 1978. 18. Ibid. 19. Artist's statement in Hudson River Museum, The World Is Round (Yonkers. N.Y.: The Hudson River Museum, 1987), p. 25. Paul Georges used the same Bruegel example to explain Hofmann’s “push and pull” to Larry Rivers. (Larry Rivers with Arnold Weinstein, What Did 1 Do: The Unauthorized Autohtogr.i-h-,’ [New York: HarperCollins, 1992], pp. 79-80). 20. Sidney Tillim, “Ness- York Exhibitions: The Month in Review,". in. Magazine, January 1963, p. 42. 21. Jonathan Brown, Images and Ideas in Seventeenth Century Spanish Painting (Princeton. NJ.: Princeton University Press, 1978), p. 93. 10. Paul Georges, “A Painter Looks at a) The Nude, b) Corot," Art News, K November 1956, p. 40. lubt, cynicism, or nihilism as he gh art. In his self-portraits, e individual in a depersonalized at freedom cannot exist without he cool, aloofflaneur observing and transforms his subjects by 'ocabulary. His passionate picto f a private man made public. 16. Richard Brilliant, Portraiture (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1991), p. 101. 3. Paul Georges to author, December 12, 1994. true of Georges. e what I do, I don't judge it.... I just 15. E. H. Gombrich, An and Illusion: A Study in the Psychology oj Pictorial Representation (Princeton, NJ.: Princeton University Press, Bollingen Paperback. 1969), p. 342. 11. Ibid. 12. Paul Georges, moderator of “Where Are We Noss’?” a panel discussion held February 19, 1971 at the Alliance of Figurative Artists, New York City. 13. Quoted in Diane Cochrane, “Paul Georges: The Object Is the Subject, American Artist, September 1974, p. 59. 14. Ibid. 22. Maurice Denis, “Definition du Neo-traditionnisme," published in August, 1890, quoted in George Heard Hamilton, Painlmg and Sculpture in Europe I8SU1940, The Pelican History of Art (New York: Penguin Books. 1972), p. 107. 23. William Rubin, editor, Pablo Picasso: A Retrospective (New York Museum of Modern Art, 1980), p. 277. 24. Interview with Karl Fortess, October 1969. ������Self-Portrait Green, 1955 oil on linen 483/4 x 43’ /a inches ��4 Artist, Lisette and Paulette in Studio, 1956 Maroger medium on linen 75'/2x 8772 inches ��I 5 Self-Portrait, 1959 oil on linen 25 3A x 313/4 inches ���i 1 gSkir— i 1 F 4 ������> 9 Self-Portrait with Model in Studio. 1967-68 oil on linen 733/b x 81 '^inches ������Painting Self-Portrait, 1972-74 oil on linen 81 x 48 inches ����14 Cedar Tavern, 1973-74 oil on linen 573/4 x 943/4 inches �Cedar Tavern, 1973-74 oil on linen 573/4x 943/4 inches ����iu �. I �Self-Portrait in the Studio, c. 1983 oil on linen 583/c x 4O'/4 inches ������a tist in residence, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire (S 1964 Ar ’ . • Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire. Solo exl S01° Mian Frumkin Gallery, New York (March 31-April 25). Awarded C B°ck Gold Medal at The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts “159th CHRONOLOGY 1923 Paul Gordon Georges born June 15 in Portland, Oregon,t0 E>al’y OstrOW (d. 1950, born in Russia) and Thomas Theseus Georges (1886-1977, boi>rn in Greece). 1939 Paints first painting while a student at Lincoln High School, Portland, Oregon. 1941-1942 Works at father’s laundry business in Portland, Oregon. 1942 Attends Oregon State College. 1943-1945 Drafted into the United States Army. Serves as an Infantry Radio Operator in the Pacific Theater (February 1943-December 1945). 1946 Attends University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon. Studies with Jack Wilk­ inson, who becomes a lifelong friend and advisor. 1947 Attends Hans Hofmann School, Provincetown, Massachusetts (Summer). Meets Jane Freilicher, Robert Goodnough, Wolf Kahn, Paul Resika, and Larry Rivers. Continues studies at the University of Oregon (Fall) and receives Junior Certificate. 1949 Spends February through April in New York City. Moves to Paris and lives on Rue de la Bucherie. Exhibits in the Salon de Mais. Attends Academic de la Grande Chaumiere and then the Atelier Fernand Leger (1949-1952). Meets Lisette Blumenfeld, daughter of photographer Erwin Blumenfeld (December). 1950 Marries Lisette Blumenfeld in Cambridge, England (January 23). Moves to La Frette, a small town outside Paris, where he rents a house formerly occupied by the painter Albert Marquet. Returns to the United States (September) after his mother dies. Returns to France (December). 1952 Travels to Italy, visits Florence, Venice, Arezzo, and Ravenna. Leaves France and moves to New York City (March). Rents a loft at 41 East 8th Street (1952-54), 1954 Clement Greenberg includes Georges in “Emerging Talent,” Kootz Gallery (November 8-27). (Although Georges cancels exhibition, review by Rank O Hara appears in Art News [November 1954].) y nK 1955 Meets John Bernard Myers; First New York solo exhibition: Tibor de Naev Gallery New York (October 25-November 12). Designs stage scenery for 0 Tennessee Williams plays produced at Lake Hopatcong, New Jersey, by Herbert Maches. 1956 Visits Oregon in conjunction with solo exhibition at Reed College Faculty Lounge, Portland, (July) and solo exhibition at University of Oregon, Eugene' Publishes “A Painter Looks at a) The Nude, b) Corot” in Art News (Novembm Fairfield Porter gives Maroger medium to Georges. 1957 Solo exhibition: Tibor de Nagy Gallery, New York (April 23-May 11), Summers at Northwest Woods, Sag Harbor. Franz Kline gives his color oil paints to Georges. 1958 Summers at Poxabogue, Long Island. Solo exhibition: The Zabriskie Gallery, New York (December 8-January 3, 1959). 1959 Family summers at Poxabogue, Long Island. Moves to 9 West 16th Street 1960 Solo exhibition: Great Jones Gallery, New York (February 23-March 13). Summers at Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts. Moves to 645 Broadway (Fall). Participates in “The Question of the Future [The Fifth International Hallmark Art Award Exhibition],” Wildenstein Gallery, New York (October 4-29); receives Purchase Award. Daughter Yvette born (November 13). 1961 Awarded Longview Foundation Fellowship Purchase Award. Solo Exhibi­ tion: Great Jones Gallery, New York (January 23-February 19). Visiting Professor of Art, University of Colorado, Boulder. (January-April). Trip to Oregon (May). Returns to Sag Harbor, Long Island (July 4). Solo exhibition: Real College, Pordand, Oregon (c. December). Exhibits in “Annual Exhibition of Contemporary American Painting,” Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. 1962 Exhibits in Figures: A Show of Current Figure Painting in New York, Kornblee Gallery, New York (May-June). Summers at Sag Harbor, Long Ishnd Solo Exhibition: Allan Frumkin Gallery, New York (November 6-Decembt: 11 Purchases home in Sagaponack, Long Island, NY. 1963 dosing on Sagaponack House January). Solo exhibition: Allan Frumta iQa,Qer^ Chicago (October 7-November 2). Exhibits in “Annual Exhibition !*63: Contemporary American Painting,” Whitney Museum of American An. New York (December 11-February 2, 1964). , Solo exhibition: Noah Goldowsky, New York (April 13-May 8). Visi 1965 r University of Oregon, Eugene, The Summer Academy of Conte UC Arts Solo exhibition: Fountain Gallery of Art, Portland, Oregon (o, rJv 2) Solo exhibition: Cord Galleries, Southampton, Long Island (July 29). Visiting Lecturer, Yale University (Fall). 1966 Solo exhibition: Allan Frumkin Gallery, New York (January 4-29 rence Campbell, “Paul Georges Paints a Nude,” is published in Art N (January). The Studio appears on the cover. Model sues Art New. Lecti School of Visual Arts. Lecturer, University of Pennsylvania (1966-67 Whitney Museum of American Art purchases The Studio (Neysa MeV Purchase Award). 1967 Artist in residence, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisi; (September-November). Returns to New York (November). Exhibits in “ Annual Exhibition of Contemporary American Painting,” Whitney Mu of American Art, New York (December 13-February 4, 1968). 1968 Solo exhibitions: Allan Frumkin Gallery, New York (January 6-Febr 4); Dorsky Gallery, New York (March 16-May 11); Union Art Gallery, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana (opened April 7); Ai residence, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, (February-April). E> in “Realism Now,” Vassar College Art Gallery, Poughkeepsie, New York 8-June 12). 1969 Alliance of Figurative Artists, initial discussion meeting; Georges ur artists to overcome psychological barriers that make “cripples” of all fig artists (February 14). Solo exhibition: Dorsky Gallery, New York (Marc! May 11). Erwin Blumenfeld (b. 1897) dies, July 4. Visiting Professor, Bo: University, Cooper Union, and Queens College (1969-70). Delivers lect the Alliance of Figurative Artists: “The Necessity of Making an Image (November 7). Exhibits in “1969 Annual Exhibition of Contemporary American Art,” Whitney Museum of American Art, Nev/ York (Decemi ebruary 1, 1970). John Canaday’s critique of “The Whitney Annual, or. Back Your Muse” appears in The New York Times (December 21). Moves to 85 Walker Street (January). Kent State Massacre (May 4). ln Painterly Realism” circulated 1970-72 by The American Federation 1971 Artist ln residence, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge (Fall). �Artist in residence, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire (Spring) ’ 7,l0 exhibition: Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire. Solo exhibi] Allan Frumkin Gallery, New York (March 31-April 25). Awarded Carol H “ i Gold Medal at The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts “159th : Annual Exhibition" (dosed March 1). >rk solo exhibition: Tibor de Naav 2). Designs stage scenery fOr S Fopatcong, New Jersey, by Herbert exhibition at Reed College Facultv at University of Oregon, Eugene >) Corot in Art Netos (November) New York (April 23-May 11). Franz Kline gives his color oil Io exhibition: The Zabriskie 959). md. Moves to 9 West 16th Street tv York (February 23-March 13). Is. Moves to 645 Broadway (Fall). The Fifth International Hallmark , New York (October 4-29); 71 (November 13). ip Purchase Award. Solo Exhibi23-February 19). Visiting ulder. (January-April). Trip to and July 4). Solo exhibition: Reed >its in “Annual Exhibition of luseum of American Art, New York. Figure Painting in New York, imers at Sag Harbor, Long Idan• ' York (November 6-December )• NY. Solo exhibition: Allan Frumkin xhibits in “Annual Exhi ltl01! hitney Museum of American Art, ,?65 Solo exhibition: Noah Goldowsky, New York (April 13-May 8). Visiting ' ecturer, University of Oregon, Eugene, The Summer Academy of Contempo: ran- Arts. Solo exhibition: Fountain Gallery of Art, Portland, Oregon (opened \ juh-2). Solo exhibition: Cord Galleries, Southampton, Long Island Quly 23i 29) visiting Lecturer, Yale University (Fall). 1966 Solo exhibition: Allan Frumkin Gallery', New York January 4-29). Law­ rence Campbell, “Paul Georges Paints a Nude,” is published in Art News (January)- 17>e Studio appears on the cover. Model sues Art News. Lecturer, School of Visual Arts. Lecturer, University of Pennsylvania (1966-67). Whitney Museum of American Art purchases The Studio (Neysa McMein purchase Award). 1967 Artist in residence, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana (September-November). Returns to New’ York (November). Exhibits in “1967 Annual Exhibition of Contemporary- American Painting,” Whitney Museum of American Art, New York (December 13-February 4, 1968). 1968 Solo exhibitions: Allan Frumkin Gallery, New York January 6-February 4): Dorsky Gallery, New York (March 16-May 11); Union Art Gallery, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana (opened April 7); Artist in residence, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, (February-April). Exhibits 1 in “Realism Now,” Vassar College Art Gallery, Poughkeepsie, New York (May 8-June 12). 1969 Alliance of Figurative Artists, initial discussion meeting; Georges urges artists to overcome psychological barriers that make “cripples’ of all figurative I artists (Februarv 14). Solo exhibition: Dorsky Gallery, New York (March 16May 11). Erwin Blumenfeld (b. 1897) dies, July 4. Visiting Professor, Boston University, Cooper Union, and Queens College (1969-70). Delivers lecture at the Alliance of Figurative Artists: “The Necessity of Making an Image (November?). Exhibits in “1969 Annual Exhibition of Contemporary •American Art,” Whitney Museum of American Art, New York (December 16February- 1,1970). John Canaday’s critique of “The Whitney Annual, or, Take Back Your Muse” appears in The New York Times (December 21). 1970 Moves to 85 Walker Street January). Kent State Massacre (May 4). Exhib' in “Painterly Realism” circulated 1970-72 by The American Federation o 1971 Artist in residence, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge (Fall). Stanford dda *" ln coniunctlor> with portrait commission of Dr. H. K. F ’ , ° d’ P,re51de"' of the University of Miami. Member of Alliance of Figurative Artists Panel, Topic: “Towards a Definition of Realism” (November 16). 1974 Delivers lecture at the Alliance of Figurative Artists: “Painting from Imaginatton (March 29). Solo exhibition: Fischbach Gallery Downtown, New ork (November 9-December 1). Member of Alliance of Figurative Artists Panel, Topic: Subject Matter, Renaissance, Humanism,” (December 20). Thomas Georges, Sr. (father) dies (December). 1975 Solo exhibition: Green Mountain Gallery, New York (March 7-27). Delivers lecture at the Alliance of Figurative Artists: “Talk," (November 7). Shows Mugging oj the Muse. Anthony Siani and Jacob Silberman subsequently sue Georges for Libel. 1976 Solo exhibition: Fischbach Gallery Uptown, New York June 30-July 31). Hilton Kramer savages exhibition in “Art View: A Disapointing Attempt at Political Allegory,” The New York Times (July 11). The exhibition coincided with Democratic National Convention held in New York City. Receives Creative Artists Public Service Program (CAPS) Award from the New York State Council on the Arts. Founder of the Artists’ Choice Museum. 1977 Visiting Professor of Art, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts. Receives inheritance, purchases house at Pomfret, CT (Fall). Georges family travels to Europe; itinerary includes London, Cambridge, Paris, Florence, Rome. 1978 Daughter Paulette marries Yannick Theodore (September 9). Brandeis University Board of Trustees appoints Georges Professor of Fine Arts, with tenure (October 6). 1979 Solo exhibition: Tomasulo Gallery, Fine Arts Department, Union College, Cranford, New Jersey (February 2-27). Member Alliance of Figurative Artists Panel Topic: “Eight Artists Speak of their Favorite Painting or Sculpture, (February 16). Solo exhibition: Meghan Williams Gallery Los Angeles (December-January 19, 1980). Visits Wyoming, Santa Barbara, and Los Angeles. �awards Siani and Silberman $30,000.00 each (Fall). Solo exhibition. Swen Parson Gallery, Northern Illinois University', DeKalb, Illinois, (Decern January IS, 1981), 1981 Awarded Benjamin Altman (Figure) Prize at die National Academy of Design "156th Annual Exhibition" (February' 26-March 29). Solo exhibition: Rose: Art Museum, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, (February 1-March 8). Included in “Contemporary American Realism since 1960,” Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Airs, Philadephia (September 18-December 13). 1982 Elected Full Academician, National Academy of Design. Solo exhibition. Zolla/Lieberman Gallery, Chicago (February 1-March 29); attends opening. Appellate Court reverses libel award (December). Georges family visit Rome, Naples, Pompeii, and Paestum (December). 1983 Visits California (May). Awarded Andrew Carnegie Prize at the National Academy of Design u158th Annual Exhibition” (March 17—April 17). Yvette moves to Los Angeles (May). Solo exhibition: College of the Mainland, Texas City, Texas, (October-November 3); attends opening. Solo exhibition: The More Gallery, Philadelphia (October 28-November 16). Sells Sagaponack house (December). 1984 Closing on Sagaponack house (January). Visits France for two weeks (January). Departs for France (April), where he spends the summer in Valcanville on the River Saire. Grandaughter Rachel Theodore born to Paulette and Yannick (May 25). Purchases “La Champagne”, a farmstead in Normandy (Fall, closing in December). Begins final year as Professor of Art, Brandeis University (Fall). Solo exhibition: Manhattan Art, New York (October 13-November 10). Visits Santa Barbara and Los Angeles (November). 1985 Solo exhibition: William Crapo Gallery, The Swain School of Design, New Bedford, Massachusetts, (February 18-March 14). Solo exhibition: Mead Art .Museum, Amherst College, Amherst, Massachusetts (March 27-April 21). During midterm, visits France, stays in Normandy residence. Retires from Brandeis University (May). Solo Exhibition: The More Gallery, Philadelphia (June). Summers in France. Included in “American Realism: Twentieth-Century Drawings and Watercolors from rhe Glenn C. Janss Collection,” San Francisco .Museum ofModern Art (November 7-January 12, 1986). 1986 Receives citation, American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters (March); exhibits in “Paintings and Sculptures by Candidates for Art Awards” (March 3-29). Awarded Ranger Prize at the National Academy of Design “161th Annual Exhibition.” Returns to New York (November). Solo exhibitionAnne Plumb Gallery', New York (December 2-January 10, 1987). 1987 Visits Santa Barbara (February). Returns to France (March). Returns to New York (December). 1989 Delivers Lecture at the Alliance of Figurative Artists: Talk” (February 10) Departs for France (February). Travels to Italy; visits Maser and Venice. Sees work of Giotto and Piero della Francesca. Fire at Zolla/Lieberman Gallery, Chicago destroys four paintings and approximately two dozen drawings (April). Daughter Yvette marries Christopher Deeton (April). Solo exhibition: Vered Gallery, East Hampton, Long Island (September). Returns to New York (October). Solo exhibition: Greenville County Museum of Art, Greenville, South Carolina (November 15-December). 1990 Awarded Certificate of Merit at the National Academy of Design “165th Annual Exhibition” (February 7-March 7). Departs for France (March). Yvette moves from Los Angeles to become manager of the Paul Georges Studio in New York (March). Purchase Award, American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, Childe Hassam and Spilcher Fund. Returns to New York (December). 1991 Solo exhibition: The More Gallery, Philadelphia (February 1-March 6). Solo exhibition: Anne Plumb Gallery, New York (February 9-March 16). Departs for France (February). Awarded Gladys Emerson Cook Prize at the National Academy of Design, New York. “ 166th Annual Exhibition” (April 2May 12). Visits Cornwall, England (May). Solo exhibition: Vered Gallery, East Hampton, Long Island (August 31-September 30). Returns to New York (November). 1992 Returns to France. Exhibits in “Slow Art: Painting in New York Now," P.S. 1 Museum, Long Island City (April 26-June 21). Receives Adolph and Esther Gottlieb Foundation Individual Support Grant. Travels to London to see Rembrandt and Mantegna Exhibitions; visits Venice and Vienna. Visits Brittany in May and August to view Megaliths Alignments. Solo exhibition: SalanderO’Reilly Galleries, New York (August 1-31). Returns to New York (October 25). 1993 Returns to France (February). Awarded Emil and Dines Carlsen Award at the National Academy of Design, New York. “168th Annual Exhibition” (April 1-May 2). Receives Pollock-Krasner Foundation, Inc. Grant (June). Views Titian Exhibition in Paris. Visits Oxford (October). Returns to New York (November). 1994 Departs for France (March). Returns to New York (October). Solo exhibition: Salander-O’Reilly Galleries, New York (November 1-26). 1995 Solo exhibition: Sordoni Art Gallery, Wilkes University, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, (January 22-March 5). Returns to France (January'). Solo exhibition: Galerie Darthea Speyer, Paris (February 2-March 18). �1 �■SUB £©!»,□M|4 . JI,MMMM a fit III i Hateigg igr - iS»> I IBliitl Mi11 ill I 1 II »■■-■-■■■• ■ i I si MjWfcMMM .•>>' 1 � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Sordoni Art Gallery Exhibition Programs, 1973-present Description An account of the resource Exhibition programs created by the Sordoni Art Gallery from 1973 to the present. Digitized by Wilkes University Archives interns, Zachary Mendoza and Sophia Kruspha. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource The Sordoni Art Gallery Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Wilkes University Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Sordoni Art Gallery Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1973-present Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Wilkes University retains copyright of these exhibition programs. Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Exhibition programs, flyers, and calendars. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1995 January 22-March 5 Paul Georges: Self-Portraits Subject The topic of the resource Exhibition programs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Paul Georges Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Sordoni Art Gallery; Wilkes University Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1995 January 22- March 5 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Type The nature or genre of the resource Exhibition Book https://omeka.wilkes.edu/omeka/files/original/92618e86bcc8c7415f114d336bd51db1.pdf e4ecb5924252154bb12074d040e3ce68 PDF Text Text :• "i FIVE MINUTES IN MEXICO PHOTOGRAPHS BY MARK COHEN SORD GA TR647 C8F5 1989 ��FIVE MINUTES IN MEXICO �FIVE MINUTES IN MEXICO: PHOTOGRAPHS BY MARK COHEN Sordoni Art Gallery Wilkes College May 14 through June 11,1989 The Philip and Muriel Berman Museum of Art Ursinus College March 15 through April 16,1990 An exhibition organized by the Sordoni Art Gallery, Wilkes College and supported in part by a grant from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts ESJEARilYLiBRARV WILKES UNIVERSITY WILKES-BARRE, PA �■VsCHlVES Introduction and Acknowledge! ,■ Copyright © 1989 by the Sordoni Art Gallery, Wilkes College, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, 18766. All rights reserved. ISBN 0-942945-00-X 1 H One thousand copies of this catalog were printed on Mead Signature 100 pound papers. 7 he text is set in Schoolbook. lype composition, duotone negative preparation, and printing by Penn Creative Litho, Old Forge, Pennsylvania. Design by Annie Bohlin, It is a rare pleasure for a college gallery to organize am exhibition of works by a member of its own academic commu reputation and contribution to his field has international rar This is the case with the current exhibition, Five Minutes Photographs by Mark Cohen. Cohen is well known for his black-and-white phot Wilkes-Barre and Scranton, their environs and inhabita tradition of the street photographer who captures the “decisv first made prominent as an art form by’ Henri Cartier-Bres uses a 35 mm camera and prefers the immediacy of the silvei more subtle platinum print. His one man show in 1973 at th( Modem Art led to others at the International Museum of P (1974) and the Art Institute of Chicago (1975). For short periods in 1981,1982, and 1985, Cohen mad Mexico: the brevity and intensity of those trips is reflected i this exhibition. Like the photographs of Pennsylvania, 1 pictures are fragments of everyday life, charged with Coh sometimes confrontational energy. But a gentle side of the p is also revealed in pictures of amazing textural richness, compassion. I thank Mark Cohen for collaborating in this participation in every phase of the exhibition, from i photographs to making suggestions for the catalog 1 contributed to its success. Annie Bohlin assisted in the sele< for the exhibition, designed the catalog, and determined tl the photographs reproduced here. Her sensitivity' to Cohe careful overseeing of the catalog production resulted in a p. quality. Marvin Heiferman, who has followed Cohen s cs 70s, provided an insightful essay which gives us an inform on Cohen’s Mexican photographs. The staff of the Zabris New York helped in the early planning stages and made th available to us for loan. The Pennsylvania Council on the matching funding in support of the catalog and travellin 92-- �Introduction and Acknowledgements Copyright - 1089 by the Sordoni Art Gallery, Wilkes College. Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. 18766. All rights reserved. ISBN 0-042945-00-X Ont thousand copies of this catalog were printed on Mead Signature 100 pound papers. The text is set in Schoolbook. Type composition, duotone negative preparation, and printing by Penn Creative Litho, Old Forge, Pennsylvania. Design by Annie Bohlin. It is a rare pleasure for a college gallery to organize and mount an exhibition of works by a member of its own academic community whose reputation and contribution to his field has international ramifications. This is the case with the current exhibition, Five Minutes in Mexico: Photographs by Mark Cohen. Cohen is well known for his black-and-white photographs of Wilkes-Barre and Scranton, their environs and inhabitants. In the tradition of the street photographer who captures the “decisive moment” first made prominent as an art form by Henri Cartier-Bresson, Cohen uses a 35 mm camera and prefers the immediacy of the silver print to the more subtle platinum print. His one man show in 1973 at the Museum of Modern Art led to others at the International Museum of Photography (1974) and the Art Institute of Chicago (1975). For short periods in 1981,1982, and 1985, Cohen made pictures in Mexico: the brevity and intensity of those trips is reflected in the title of this exhibition. Like the photographs of Pennsylvania, the Mexican pictures are fragments of everyday life, charged with Cohen’s uneasy, sometimes confrontational energy. But a gentle side of the photographer is also revealed in pictures of amazing textural richness, humor, and compassion. I thank Mark Cohen for collaborating in this project. His participation in every phase of the exhibition, from selecting the photographs to making suggestions for the catalog format, have contributed to its success. Annie Bohlin assisted in the selection of works for the exhibition, designed the catalog, and determined the sequence of the photographs reproduced here. Her sensitivity to Cohen’s work and careful overseeing of the catalog production resulted in a product of high quality. Marvin Heiferman, who has followed Cohen’s career since the 70s, provided an insightful essay which gives us an informed perspective on Cohen’s Mexican photographs. The staff of the Zabriskie Gallery in New York helped in the early planning stages and made the photographs available to us for loan. The Pennsylvania Council on the Arts provided matching funding in support of the catalog and travelling exhibition. 92-1838iN - �^produce this exhibition. Judith H. O’Toole Director A DIFFERENT tri ��It’s hard to believe that only one hundred and fifty years have passed since the announcement of the invention of photography; but what is even more remarkable is that in that very short period of time (the photographic era being only the tip of the iceberg of recorded development), we’ve become so image-dependent. We read less, but always want to see more. So, more and more magazines are published yearly and in each magazine more and more ad pages are sold and more and more images are reproduced. And we continue looking, like addicts, as the tally of pictures mount. We watch movies in theaters and then drive home through landscapes polka-dotted with satellite dishes, only to shove more movies into the VCR. Not only have we become mesmerized by photography in all of its incarnations, we now actually need the camera’s particular brand of vision, truth, and history. If we live so furiously in a hectic present that we forget the past, photography helps us remember. If our lives seem repetitive and small-time, photography reminds us of the larger world. And if that bigger world starts to move too fast, photography stops it. Photography even shows you how to be someone else, when you don’t like who you are. When life seems totally out of control, when there are riots downtown or plane crashes at the airport or outrageous instances of child abuse in the house next door, photography calms us as it transmits the bad news and the chaos, all within four neat, straight borders. And, most of all, photography gives us a second crack at reality. So, no wonder we enjoy pictures — taking them, being in them, look­ ing at them. Photographs encourage us to remember what has been seen and to study what we never could have noticed: the expression on a face turned away from us, but toward the camera; the full outline of the leg that only attracted our attention from the corner of an eye; the shape of a raindrop unintelligible in the commotion of a storm, but frozen on film. We can now see that the history of the medium has gone full circle. A century and a half ago, we invented photography. And now, the influence of the photographic image is so pervasive that it is becoming obvious that it is the pictures that are defining us. □ Nowhere in the history of photography is this symbiosis between image and identity clearer than in the startlingly ideosyncratic work of Mark Cohen. We like to think of photographers as explorers, visionaries in search of the exotic, documentarians in search of some universal �I and towns of eastern Pennsylvania, Cohen has assembled a unique travelogue of his own Kafkaesque reality, a remarkable body of work that is built upon split-second impulses and reactions. Because his work is so instinctive, and so internalized, he has seldom needed to travel to find subject matter. In his work, the unusual has always existed close at hand. Often just around the comer. Cohen’s photographs are challenging. There’s always just enough of an edge of visual violence in his work — rudeness, nervous energy — to continually confound our expectation of what photography might tell us and what we should be looking for. Using a hand-held camera, pointing it in directions we would never think of, Cohen has compulsively over­ turned Cartier-Bresson’s notion of “the decisive moment,” giving each picture an exquisitely surreal American spin. In his photographs, the decisive moment is never that slice of time in which human nature is revealed, but is the instant that clarifies the distance between what is noticed and what is understood. In Cohen’s American photographs, people tend to look either uncomfortable or, in one way or another, seductive; they are often angry at the camera’s (and Cohen’s) intrusion. Common objects seem isolated, mysterious, menacing. Cohen’s pictures, frequently illuminated by the artificial light of a strobe, are expressions of distraction, masterpieces of the unresolved feeling we all have, but would rather not acknowledge, let alone display. He seldom fails to remind us how far our lives are from how we would choose to have them remembered. It’s ironic that an artist who takes pictures as if he were a tourist in his own day-to-day reality should travel to a foreign country to make calm photographs. But in the images included in this exhibit, made in Mexico in 1981,1982, and 1985, that is exactly what we have the rare opportunity to see. There is no terrifying sense of urgency in these pictures. Mexico is just foreign enough to insert a little distance between Cohen s mind and his nerve endings. His guard is down, he’s relaxed. So, what we see is Cohen figuring out how to situate himself in an environment, rather than define himself against it. Look at the faces of the Mexicans depicted as they look back into the camera. For them, Cohen isn’t butting in. He’s just another gringo tourist, a harmless guy on holiday who will soon disappear with some pictures they will never see. They’re amused by his presence. At most, they’re mildly curious about what he might be looking at. While they are used to this situation, he is not. And we are not. It’s a revelation to see how Cohen works when he has the freedom of a visitor and has nothing to lose. As he shows us street life or people at work and at rest in cafes, what we recognize is Cohen’s curiousity and sense of wonder at work. The pictures don’t explode, they just seem to happen. They have an odd sweetness. A stuffed alligator floats high on a restaurant wall, unex­ pected yet benign. Electrical wires dangle elegantly. And there are pyramids everywhere, from the Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacan to the yogurt display in a shop’s display case, from piles of fruit in a market to beehives piled up at the edge of a highway, from a folded white napkin that has fallen on the street to a Christmas tree being carried down the street. People dance, do their chores, live their lives. There are no major confrontations, just leisurely and assured observations. There no impending terror, none of the connoisseurship of little terrors that we’ve come to expect in Cohen’s work. In Mexico, Mark Cohen is a stranger, an outsider rather than a participant. What a relief for him, and for us. The Mexican photographs provide us with a peaceful opportunity to identify the strength, the grace, and the formal assurance that form the underlying structure in all of Cohen’s work, but are often overlooked. Neither he, nor we, can presume to know too much about the people or the lives that have been recorded. There are no existential mini-dramas in any of the images. W e are not encouraged to measure our lives against those of the subjects photographed. But what we are presented with is a rare opportunity to watch how a difficult, brilliant photographer navigates the unknown — with an ease, dignity, and intelligence that we all might envy. Marvin Heiferman �^^homgrXg for two decades in Wilkes-Barre and in the cities d towns of eastern Pennsylvania, Cohen has assembled a unique Svelo-ue of his own Kafkaesque reality, a remarkable body of work -hat is built upon snlit-second impulses and reactions. Because his work is .o instinctive, and so internalized, he has seldom needed to travel to find subject matter. In his work, the unusual has always existed close at hand. Often just around the comer. _ Cohen’s photographs are challenging. There s always just enough of an edge ofvisual violence in his work — rudeness, nervous energy — to continually confound our expectation of what photography might tell us and what we should be looking for. Using a hand-held camera, pointing it in directions we would never think of, Cohen has compulsively over­ turned Cartier-Bresson’s notion of “the decisive moment,” giving each picture an exquisitely surreal American spin. In his photographs, the decisive moment is never that slice of time in which human nature is revealed, but is the instant that clarifies the distance between what is noticed and what is understood. In Cohen's American photographs, people tend to look either uncomfortable or. in one way or another, seductive; they are often angry at the camera’s < and Cohen’s) intrusion. Common objects seem isolated, mysterious, menacing. Cohen’s pictures, frequently illuminated by the artificial light of a strobe, are expressions of distraction, masterpieces of the unresolved feeling we all have, but would rather not acknowledge, let alone display. He seldom fails to remind us how’ far our lives are from how we would choose to have them remembered. It’s ironic that an artist who takes pictures as if he were a tourist in his own day-to-day reality should travel to a foreign country to make calm photographs. But in the images included in this exhibit, made in Mexico in 1981,1982, and 1985, that is exactly what we have the rare opportunity to see. There is no terrifying sense of urgency in these pictures. Mexico is just foreign enough to insert a little distance between o en s mind and his nerve endings. His guard is down, he’s relaxed. So, v at we see is Cohen figuring out how to situate himself in an environment, rather than define himself against it. ook at the faces of the Mexicans depicted as they look back into e cameia. For them, Cohen isn’t butting in. He’s just another gringo tourist, a harmless guy on holiday who will soon disappear with some pictures they will never see. They’re amused by his presence. At most, they’re mildly curious about what he might be looking at. While they are used to this situation, he is not. And we are not. It’s a revelation to see how Cohen works when he has the freedom of a visitor and has nothing to lose. As he shows us street life or people at work and at rest in cafes, what we recognize is Cohen’s curiousity and sense of wonder at work. The pictures don’t explode, they just seem to happen. They have an odd sweetness. A stuffed alligator floats high on a restaurant wall, unex­ pected yet benign. Electrical wires dangle elegantly. And there are pyramids everywhere, from the Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacan to the yogurt display in a shop’s display case, from piles of fruit in a market to beehives piled up at the edge of a highway, from a folded white napkin that has fallen on the street to a Christmas tree being carried down the street. People dance, do their chores, live their lives. There are no major confrontations, just leisurely and assured observations. There no impending terror, none of the connoisseurship of little terrors that we’ve come to expect in Cohen’s work. In Mexico, Mark Cohen is a stranger, an outsider rather than a participant. What a relief for him, and for us. The Mexican photographs provide us with a peaceful opportunity to identify the strength, the grace, and the formal assurance that form the underlying structure in all of Cohen’s work, but are often overlooked. Neither he, nor we, can presume to know too much about the people or the lives that have been recorded. There are no existential mini-dramas in any of the images. W e are not encouraged to measure our lives against those of the subjects photographed. But what we are presented with is a rare opportunity to watch how a difficult, brilliant photographer navigates the unknown — with an ease, dignity, and intelligence that we all might envy. Marvin Heiferman �1981 MEXICO CITY ���.. TO RTA5 . Xv.-.y • ���- �a t I ■ �����‘>'fii I.-: -:, : <■' :p I /7 '=- I Ji ���A ��r® —4 -r I SifttaSH BtfillB H I iW^lS§l!S^igiisgli:i^aSii§S -!;lI fi KIIliiiMliHiffl ■; ■ Wil! I =Wi'=iSii»i'!=l^E:g^s=2fsS:=i=i 1 =| if t iijii:iSW120 ifB=.S:=s!g e g I'• aB:;s:a.!Sg’'g.!:^S~i^r?.:gE:Sif:si:g =:s«£«~ g 1 Wf B:ii;iOs®S i gig^gsgSs&seBsg.ggssSgfl?®"^ g II SWIihBIifilfflrtHi I fiMfliiiiBiiiifctt | ^^E:=S:s8:ESi=®Js4i^S«i;::r^S .. — 5* I i- i �1982 MEXICO CITY �... ___ ���saa ��J —. _ ����I 1 BgjM- ?*; ,. J ?;.i: fjga! "i ?-•. ■•■■ • • ■ S rosa blanca I iWffl ! i :\-|F 3y t * 14 . is k I 1 ■ ' ■ |lv L "■Cb?; r ■ »K » ! ��■I : -LI ��I ; | ��I .. L ��1985 VERACRUZ ��I 11 • r ������1 �f I < ■ t w v ■ i1 vj I la. i - ■w ■I t ���£ ��I i ��do*. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. >). 6. 1. 3. 9. 10 11. 12. 13. ilw()w()^n/operall98l lining child in white cape], 1981 11 lark proud nian|. 1981 I Repiii ring I ’yramid of the Sun|, 1981. Weics (Kids in old car at night] 1981 i i inci • - . HittIhtz C’rackers]1981 |(did carrying. hi bag-vest approaches whiteline], 1981 (lloyin-^ iir/ in the whitedressskipping], 1981 girls in schoolclothes], 1981, Tepoztlan 14. t< 15. ids offruit], 1981 ... iiyr.iiH1sheet], 1981 16- [Bee hives/highway], 1982 [Fuses and meters], 1982 [Woman straps shoe in old building], 1982 [Local bar], 1982 [Table and chairs in street; flash], 1982 [La Rosa Blanca], 1982 [Wire lead into soda bottle], 1982 [Girl in small shoe repair], 1982 [Local restaurant and coffee], 1982 [Snack in steel case], 1982 [Napkin in shadow], 1982 [Girl in black skirt], 1982 Veracruz December 12 -19,1985 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. [Chalkboard menu], 1985 [Beauty shop], 1985 [Hanging light bulb], 1985 [Boy laughing; teeth], 1985 [Plastic sheet], 1985 [Waiter and money], 1985 [White sock], 1985 [Young girl eating], 1985 [Kids on sidewalk], 1985 [People dancing], 1985 [People walking/sidewalk], 1985 [Soda truck at gas pump], 1985 [Dog in shadows], 1985 [Napkins in glass], 1985 b.719b’ ■ ,cw v-.... " her-'’" ,1^ n J"' g>■y- teleP"‘ I hill1" Photographs are courtesy of the Zabriskie Gallery, New York. �' .2 i �� Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Sordoni Art Gallery Exhibition Programs, 1973-present Description An account of the resource Exhibition programs created by the Sordoni Art Gallery from 1973 to the present. Digitized by Wilkes University Archives interns, Zachary Mendoza and Sophia Kruspha. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource The Sordoni Art Gallery Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Wilkes University Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Sordoni Art Gallery Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1973-present Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Wilkes University retains copyright of these exhibition programs. Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Exhibition programs, flyers, and calendars. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1989 May 14-June 11 Five in Mexico Subject The topic of the resource Exhibition programs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Mark Cohen Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Sordoni Art Gallery; Wilkes University Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1989 May 14-June 11 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Type The nature or genre of the resource Exhibition Book https://omeka.wilkes.edu/omeka/files/original/cbc27b9799c2a44612618204f95b064f.pdf fdb38f0a7f47a0b6eddec7b8fc2795b3 PDF Text Text IBWs r-^-. ~:r; KiBflBORP*®- EW ^WSO®#! ' :JfI 7W ■•«■■■ M lisss” SORD GA ND237 D98B5 �E.S. FARLEY LIBRARY WILKES UNIVERSITY WILKES-BARREJ’A �BERENICE D’VORZON: P, 1980Tick Island and Louse Point ate i«-:rl place". Ihe. bflonu to those ulmi-.r parii vai wildeme. .■ . <d Long Island which He a scant fifty miles horn the metropolis <»<•••! in t- arid n, I r< k of New York have resided there I .: < ■ . pi r ulhe ■ i't d.t Hie !<-.'« tlncke'S. ■'> - t in.rr tif.ind .'iri' .ugh to nvei'.h.i'low .iny olhe. 'inj..............1. . , , .c-- tel-, i.<• i • have Ir.rd ol the tetI fill i II,line-, Io the .<■ pl i< e . I ,ile| t.l . iv> |er . b-o• • • e■ of hind. *.e.> , i .'.>s i It ;.j .ip. -.1 tie .11;,i in Oldl’l to .dvor lh<Old dif to b’ >, I 1‘ |(1 fj.. ih< (* nineteenth < «-nthi y, i r>-h:.t- i rd f it" . .- ipi 1 ■ . ,f r, t, '.n< h a . Joini I I umini'.l ven .ibditie , 1 , . ,,i. cover: no. 13 itJ |. t .] . . . pl i-l.'.O » > ,1 J‘-) ■ '.-e ;'e They are not so ulpturaliy dramatic i .rocky > (. - 'U!>>r,t ■ > ’r;«‘ y ;> ;<•■-.-,j 1 e 1; . . rnoio < (Hit empl.it I spirits leisurely before tt.e Berenice bWorzor: I ou-»e Point .. r :,'oa;i .e o' nil', 1/ e 1. e o r; she beqrsn e- e.e, .’.-, East di-.r,' r.-;- ,-.j.-e ,. •- -oioi r. ,p.red b, la'..'!-., .-.pe , t;f; ‘ Hampton m her ;< r r, t.-ie.r brew of i.qhr , P if ;■ *> -, I,; lets of fiatuie horr. >,< . SORDONI ART GALLERY WILKES COLLEGE 150 South River Street Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania 18766 .</; • : . i' ' 0,1'.t-. of Main**. h.'M hot -■> of IA I . . r ARCHIVES :nei- 1. :i . . .. tO !'■< r,irl tfil, .•■ (.h.||(. ;.■■'! no. 15 Vour 1 A'.e l"/ir.‘ 'I 1111nt the .per ial liqhi f >• e Her wore f .a'. a.wa/s beer, Lir.r,* Shaf’ na? • it..', executed in the late neventie', *ere deoved from ’he ■ - around :■ - pe-.,-. �BERENICE D’VORZON: PAINTINGS & DRAWINGS, 1980-1982 3. 13 II ART GALLERY COLLEGE i River Street rre, Pennsylvania 18766 Tick Island and Louse Point are real places. They belong to those almost primeval wildernesses of Long Island which lie a scant fifty miles from the metropolis of New York. Ticks and lice and myriad other species have resided there for eons amidst the low thickets, marshes, and surrounding sea. Pesty enough to overshadow any other impressions early travelers may have had of the terrain, the ticks and the lice gave their names to these places. Later travelers have endured the irritations of insects in order to savor the more subtle and enduring moods of land, sea, and air to be found there. In the nineteenth century, a number of landscapists of note, such as John F. Kensett and William S. Mount, came to paint the special light and color which appealed to their Luminist sensibilities. Painters still come to Long Island to record those changing, yet changeless, phenomena. They are not so sculpturally dramatic as the rocky coasts of Maine, or so picturesquely quaint as the harbors of Massachusetts. They appeal, perhaps, to more contemplative souls who like to purloin the secrets of Nature from her somnolence or imbibe her spirits leisurely before the intoxication hits. Berenice D’Vorzon has moved about Tick Island and Louse Point since she began summering in East Hampton in her teens, and she has drunk her share of their brew of light and color. Her work has always been inspired by landscape. The "Light Shaft” paintings she executed in the late seventies were derived from the orests around her farm in northeastern Pennsylvania. Shafts of shifting colored light interplaying with shafts of solid tree and foliage were transformed into radiant graduations of tone and color in her canvases. The paintings she has done over the past two years have evolved during prolonged stays in East Hampton, and stand in striking contrast to the “Light Shaft" series. The coastal terrain may suggest to her a more dynamic set of shapes than did the sylvan regiments of Pennsylvania, or maybe there is simply some deeper urge to replace the almost classical order of the "Shafts” with a more baroque dynamism. The central preoccupations with radiant light and ambiguous space have not changed, but everything else has. Shapes twist and turn, expand and contract with eruptive energy. Paint flows, drips, and thrusts. Compositions seem held together by more precarious means. We are on the verge of experiencing something akin to the Action Painting of the fifties. D'Vorzon's formative years as an artist indeed coincided with the tumult of Abstract Expressionism. But in the sixties and early seventies, it became fashionable to relegate that movement to the history books, to declare it spent, as if a decade were enough to explore its ramifications. There followed a succession of styles which were emotionally detached, compared to the naked passion of the Action group. Pop Op, Minimal, and Photorealism all resolutely avoided romantic personalism and bravura paint.ng techniques. Abstract Expressionism was not a cool style, and the sixties and seventies sought coolness. 91-18000B �method of the Expressionists. The recent varieties of painterly primitivism, the New Imagists, and the messier, more torrid forms of pattern painting are indicative of this shift. D’Vorzon had never really drifted far from that pole anyhow. While her “Light Shaft" paintings seem rather cool in manner now, their romantic essence was always apparent. The new works renew the painterly dynamism of her early style, combining with it the complex color and tonal harmonies worked out in the intervening years. The result is a multivalent richness of surface and illusion, substance and light, active and passive movement — an orchestration of form which intensifies the landscape experience to a level of transcendence. The most conspicuous Abstract Expressionist element in the new works are the drips, which D’Vorzon has revived without fear of being labelled a reactionary action painter. William Pellicone, writing of D’Vorzon’s 1980 exhibition at the Soho Center for the Visual Arts, noted the "classical structure (she added) to the usual action drips."1 Functionally, the passive accident of the drips plays against the willful propulsion of the impasto arcs. The drips also reassert the flatness of the picture plane against the atmospheric illusions of the brushwork. The drips are, indeed, part of a repertory of painterly gestures, along with the glazes, impastos, scumbles, and ribbons of paint drawn from the tube, all aimed at representing the dynamics of nature through a distinctive and personal vision. Tempos overlap, and muted expanses are invaded by shots of color which ferry the eye across “seas” and along "shorelines.” to explore other forms in the repertory, such as the slashing arcs (e.g. “Louse Point Violet"). The “air and sea” pictures of 1980 and early 1981, with their distant horizons, began to give way in the middle of 1981 to pictures containing definite foreground elements, as in “Night Tracer (Tick Island)." Surging organic shapes have come to dominate the latest pictures, notably the “Acabonac Air” series. D’Vorzon rightfully does not consider herself a flatout Expressionist. There is unquestionably a powerful emotional energy coursing through her work, but it remains intimately attached to the landscape itself. In fact, most of the paintings and drawings closely resemble the essential patterns and tonalities of specific places and phenomena. Their representationalism is surprisingly clear when compared with photographs of the sites.2 As Helen Harrison observed in a recent reference to D’Vorzon's work in The Tieu> York Times, "the illusion of landscape and the reality of the painted surface alternate in the viewer’s consciousness.”’ Lush pigment and strong design allow these paintings to stand alone as abstractions, while clear echos of natural space and light grant them illusionism. Rather like the Cubists, D’Vorzon has fashioned a surface which is simultaneously flat and threedimensional. This is a difficult ambiguity to maintain, this retaining of the rich tactility and rhythmic patterning of surface, while at the same time flirting with a void aglow with colored light, or with a shape that begins to penetrate into the canvas and assume mass. In another review of D’Vorzon’s work last "to describe a three-dimensional spatial sensation without renaissance perspective illusions, by taking painterly elements that could suggest the sense of changing light, density, and mutations of vibrant, sensuous experience, and using them in new arbitrary ways to invent the essence of a scene. Il is a vocabulary of nature's signs reduced to the language of pigment. Color is alternately solid and fluid as it gestures, drips, moves, or is contained within bold shapes composed of abstract strokes."4 The most recent paintings, such as the "Acabonac Air" pictures, reveal clearer perspectives of the landscape. D’Vorzon's interest in the dynamics of pictorial space has. in fact, led her to the use of raking aerial views, akin to late medieval landscapes, which reveal botfi the perspective of the topography and its surface patterns. Even more than space, light inspires D’Vorzon. An immense, carefully orchestrated range of tonalities pervades her work, paintings and drawings alike. Light radiates from her surfaces in ways often more suggestive of bravura quasi-lrnpressionists, such as Manet or Sargent, than of the Abstract Expressionists. In many of the works, her sensibilities seem to run even closer to those of the great Romantic landscapist, Turner, whose frothy evocations of mist laden air and churning sea reached new heights of evocative sublimity. Like these i provides us w nature. Hers < out remote fn condensation: the sea. sunsr seen, felt. ant into some me nature's press Genesis in th darkness upo forms. The er been coerced pictorial dear Notes 1. William I Look." ir 2. Compare photogra 3. Helen A. and Real January 4. Phyllis B Der.emb* �we ner ;rly jre is at m was y he !SS and :h irzon tary an’s .rts, jal the le y of all gh a d The drips have become less important since their initial appearance, however, as D Vorzon has turned to explore other forms in the repertory, such as the slashing arcs (e.g. “Louse Point Violet ). The air and sea” pictures of 1980 and early 1981, with their distant horizons, began to give way in the middle of 1981 to pictures containing definite foreground elements, as in “Night Tracer (Tick Island).” Surging organic shapes have come to dominate the latest pictures, notably the “Acabonac Air” series. D’Vorzon rightfully does not consider herself a flatout Expressionist. There is unquestionably a powerful emotional energy coursing through her work, but it remains intimately attached to the landscape itself. In fact, most of the paintings and drawings closely resemble the essential patterns and tonalities of specific places and phenomena. Their representationalism is surprisingly clear when compared with photographs of the sites.2 As Helen Harrison observed in a recent reference to D’Vorzon’s work in The New York Times, “the illusion of landscape and the reality of the painted surface alternate in the viewer’s consciousness.”3 Lush pigment and strong design allow these paintings to stand alone as abstractions, while clear echos of natural space and light grant them illusionism. Rather like the Cubists, D’Vorzon has fashioned a surface which is simultaneously flat and threedimensional. This is a difficult ambiguity to maintain, this retaining of the rich tactility and rhythmic patterning of surface, while at the same time flirting with a void aglow with colored light, or with a shape that begins to penetrate into the canvas and assume mass. In another review of D’Vorzon’s work last December, Phyllis Braff described her search for a method "to describe a three-dimensional spatial sensation without renaissance perspective illusions, by taking painterly elements that could suggest the sense of changing light, density, and mutations of vibrant, sensuous experience, and using them in new arbitrary ways to invent the essence of a scene. It is a vocabulary of nature's signs reduced to the language of pigment. Color is alternately solid and fluid as it gestures, drips, moves, or is contained within bold shapes composed of abstract strokes."4 The most recent paintings, such as the “Acabonac Air" pictures, reveal clearer perspectives of the landscape. D'Vorzon’s interest in the dynamics of pictorial space has, in fact, led her to the use of raking aerial views, akin to late medieval landscapes, which reveal both the perspective of the topography and its surface patterns. Even more than space, light inspires D’Vorzon. An immense, carefully orchestrated range of tonalities pervades her work, paintings and drawings alike. Light radiates from her surfaces in ways often more suggestive of bravura quasi-Impressionists, such as Manet or Sargent, than of the Abstract Expressionists. In many of the works, her sensibilities seem to run even closer to those of the great Romantic landscapist, Turner, whose frothy evocations of mist-laden air and churning sea reached new heights of evocative sublimity. Like these nineteenth century counterparts, D’Vorzon provides us with an almost palpable immersion in nature. Hers are not abstract permutations worked out remote from their inspiration. They are vivid condensations of specific phenomena — storms over the sea, sunsets, glimmering ponds, tangled thickets — seen, felt, and pushed through into paint, to bring us into some moment of rapture which the artist felt in nature’s presence. There is something like a vision of Genesis in these paintings. Light emerges out of darkness upon a primeval world of half-generated forms. The energy is nascent and unbridled, but it has been coerced by a controlling will into meaningful pictorial drama. William H. Sterling Director Notes William Pellicone, ‘‘Tradition With the Forward Look," in Artspeak, May 22, 1980. 2. Compare "Acabonac Air-Entrance" with the photograph of Louse Point. 3. Helen A. Harrison, "49 Artists Capture the Illusions and Realities of Winter," in The New York Times, January 3, 1982. 4. Phyllis Braff, review in The East Hampton Star, December 3, 1981. 1. �lUl no. 9 �no. 9 �PERSONAL HISTORY: Born: New York City BFA: Cranbrook Academy of Art (1954) MA: Columbia University (1968) Assoc. Prof. — Printmaking & Painting, Wilkes College, Pa. (since 1969) EXHIBITIONS: Sordoni Gallery, Wilkes College, Pa. (1982) Loft Gallery, Southampton, N.Y. (1981) (3 person) "Illusions of Space," First Women’s Bank, N.Y. (1981) (4 person) Soho Center for Visual Artists, N.Y.C. (1980) (2 person) Benson Gallery, Bridgehampton, N.Y. (1976) Everhart Museum, Pa. (1975) (2 person) Keystone College, Pa. (1972) Brata Gallery, N.Y.C. (1957, '59, ’62) GALLERY GROUPS: Marion Locks Gallery, Philadelphia, Pa. (1981, ’82) Barbara Gillman Gallery, Miami, Fla. (1981, ’82) Loft Gallery, Southampton, N.Y., ‘‘Collage’’ (1981) Benson Gallery, N.Y. (1980) lanuzzi Gallery, Scottsdale, Az. (1978-79) N.E. Pennsylvania Invitational Traveling Exhibition (1978, ’81) Soho Co-op Galleries, N.Y.C. — 10th Street Artists (1978) Lehigh University — Pennsylvania Printmakers Bicentennial Invitational (1976) Spoleto, Italy — Plinio i! Giovane (1973); Rome, Italy — Primo Piano (1972) Chicago — Robert Paul Gallery (1971); Detroit — Rubiner Gallery (1971-72) Paris, France — Creuze (1965); Mexico City — Proteo (1960) New York — Brata, Camino, Tanager, Nonegon, Phoenix, Artists, etc. (1958-68) MUSEUM GROUPS: Aldrich Museum, Conn., "New Acquisitions" (1981) Guild Hall Museum, East Hampton, N.Y., "Winterscape" (1981) Allentown Museum (1976); Artists of the Springs, Aswagh Hall (1976-80) Roberson Museum, N.Y. (1975); Spoleto Festival (1973): Vienna Print Biennale (1972) Everhart Museum, Pa. (1968, '70, ’77): Guild Hall, East Hampton (1967, '69, '70, '72, ’81) Tokyo Museum of Modern Art (1960); Whitney Museum and Library of Congress (1957) AWARDS: "Best Abstract Painting in Show," Guild Hall Museum Annual (1981) Purchase Award — Everhart Museum (1976) Juror's Award — Roberson Museum (1975) Award Exhibition — City Center, N.Y.C. (1955) COMMISSIONS: Curator: OIA sponsored travelling print show, “Artists Who Make Prints” (1980-81) Cover for N.E. Pennsylvania Philharmonic 1976-77 season program Mural (4 x 32 ft.), Community Medical Center Hospital, Pa. (1977) Mural (9 x 50 ft.), Percy Brown, Allentown, Pa. (1971) COLLECTIONS: Everhart Museum, Pa.; Aldrich Museum. Conn.; Library of Congress; Oppenheimer Co.; Best Corp.; General Instrument; Ivan Chermayeff (APC); Southampton Hospital: Bank of New York, Miami; Wyoming National Bank, Dallas and Kingston, Pa.; and many private Collections. �3UPS: m, Conn., “Hew Acquisitions" (1981) eum, East Hampton, N.Y., “Winterscape” eum (1976); Artists of the Springs, (1976-80) :um, N.Y. (1975); Spoleto Festival (1973); Biennale (1972) jm, Pa. (1968, ’70, ’77); Guild Hall, >n (1967, '69, ’70, ’72, ’81) i of Modern Art (1960); Whitney Museum and ingress (1957) Painting in Show,” Guild Hall Museum Annual d — Everhart Museum (1976) — Roberson Museum (1975) on — City Center, N.Y.C. (1955) S: lonsored travelling print show, “Artists Who (1980-81) Pennsylvania Philharmonic 1976-77 season .), Community Medical Center Hospital, Pa. .), Percy Brown, Allentown, Pa. (1971) >: im, Pa.; Aldrich Museum, Conn.; Library of ipenheimer Co.; Best Corp.; General van Chermayeff (APC); Southampton Hospital; York, Miami; Wyoming National Bank, Dallas i, Pa.; and many private Collections. no. 14 �no. 16 no. 17 Louse Point (photograph) 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. Cache-Cache Low Horizon Water 1980. Fail Silver 15 Louse Point . Louse Point Hot Hight on Water Tracer Hight Tracer E H Sassafra E H Sassafra Fresh Pond-\ AcabonacAi Acabonac Ai Tick Island S Fresh PondA E H Sassafra �LIST OF WORKS 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. no. 16 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. no. 17 Louse Point (photograph) Cache-Cache 1980, acrylic on canvas, 60" x 68" Low Horizon Melt 1980, acrylic on paper, 39" x 28" Water 1980, acrylic on paper, 39" x 28" Fall Silver 1980-81, acrylic on canvas, 68" x 60" Louse Point Pink 1981, acrylic on canvas, 36" x 34" Louse Point Violet 1981, acrylic on canvas, 50" x 40" Hot Night on Tick Island 1981, acrylic on canvas, 40" x 30" Water Tracer 1981, acrylic on canvas, 54" x 60" Night Tracer (Tick Island) 1981, acrylic on canvas, 40" x 50" E H Sassafras-Dancer 1981, acrylic on canvas, 54" x 60" E H Sassafras-Interlock 1981, acrylic on paper, 21" x 28" Fresh Pond-Wind 1981, acrylic on canvas, 60" x 68" Acabonac Air-Entrance 1982, acrylic on canvas, 68" x 84" Acabonac Air-Landing 1982, acrylic on canvas, 68" x 72" Tick Island Storm 1981, graphite on paper, 27" x 41" Fresh Pond-Wind 1981, graphite on paper, 27" x 41" E H Sassafras-Dark 1981, graphite on paper, 27" x 41" �BERENICE D’VORZON Paintings and Drawings 1980-1982 SORDONI ART GALLERY Wilkes College �■*- ' • ■ SBr-b: 4« rt'/A ioooxa? ] �^^8 ESSSsSSsjHsss^s-S^sy - MSSa^^^M Lr^-;^ SsoW'S^i-i-s- E^SS.f^S-Ci.S: p^s^ViT,’ taBS -■t? ’ 1' -s f.rJ I cJ5S ■ ■■- ■?■ ■ ■. is ' S/S; ~sS SSS£5||gjg?g= =§^5?SS~g ifeSSg? jjsSsglsss f? gj ^S=SS5S SlSi;ss.s � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Sordoni Art Gallery Exhibition Programs, 1973-present Description An account of the resource Exhibition programs created by the Sordoni Art Gallery from 1973 to the present. Digitized by Wilkes University Archives interns, Zachary Mendoza and Sophia Kruspha. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource The Sordoni Art Gallery Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Wilkes University Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Sordoni Art Gallery Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1973-present Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Wilkes University retains copyright of these exhibition programs. Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Exhibition programs, flyers, and calendars. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1980-1982 Berenice D'Vorzon: Paintings and Drawings Subject The topic of the resource Exhibition Programs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Berenice D'Vorzon Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Sordoni Art Gallery; Wilkes University Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1980-1982 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Type The nature or genre of the resource Exhibition Book