Object Labels Speaking Parts FINAL 9.15.08

8/14/2019 Object Labels Speaking Parts FINAL 9.15.08

1/43

Mark Tobey

Born Centreville, Wisconsin, 1890

Died Basel, Switzerland, 1976Movemento, 1954Oil on composition board

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Col. and Mrs.A. H. Hooker, 1964.16

This unique style of painting by Northwest

artistMark Tobey is called white writing. Itidentifies works where light-colored marksoverlie an abstract field of color, creating adense pattern and playing with spatialdepth. The marks grew out of Tobeysinterest in Persian and Arabic scripts and

Asian calligraphy, each with distinctivecultural historiesand beautiful and fluid energy.


2/43

Robert Motherwell

Born Aberdeen, Washington, 1915

Died Provincetown, Massachusetts, 1991Open No. 176 (in Crimson with Orangeand Black Line), 1970Acrylic on canvas

Tacoma Art Museum, Museum purchasewith the aid of funds from the NationalEndowment for the Arts, 1971.44

The abstract expressionist painters, likeRobert Motherwell, believed thatabstraction had the power to evoke deeperpersonal, social, and political responsesthan realistic images could. They strippedworks down to their essentials to better

focus attention on the works underlyingmeaning and to showcase the dramaticpower of pure color, line, and gesture.In this painting from Motherwells Openseries, the vibrant crimson field supports asingle line and part of a square, suggestingfragments of windows and doors, openings

into other dimensions.


3/43

Artist unknownButterflies (Kcho), 1836Woodblock print

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. James W.Lyon, 1971.143.2

This beautiful image illustrates a scenefrom Genji monogatari (The Tale of Genji),an eleventh-century Japanese novel aboutthe life and many loves of Prince Genji, an

emperors son. Here the women of Genjishousehold enjoy his new pleasure boat andview the spring flowers.

This work is a surimono print, a typecommissioned by wealthy patrons asgreetings or announcements of specialoccasions such as tea ceremonies, poetrycompetitions, or holidays. They wereelaborately printed using special materials.In this print, gold leaf has been used for theclouds.


4/43

Guy Anderson

Born Edmonds, Washington, 1906

Died La Conner, Washington, 1998Circle of Life, 1972Oil on paper

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of the Aloha Club,1974.3

Guy Anderson often used symbols in his

work, such as the embryo form thatsuggests birth in this painting.He also regularly drew upon motifs found inNorthwest Native American and Asian art.

Anderson was one of the group of artistscalled

The Northwest Mystics, who wereprominent in the mid-20th century andwhose work often carried social, moral, andphilosophical messages woven into theirabstract or symbolic compositions. Othermembers of this group represented in thisgallery are Mark Tobey and Morris Graves.

Many of Andersons paintings reveal hisfascination with the structure of theuniverse and the never-ending cycle ofbirth, growth, and death.


5/43

George LuksBorn Williamsport, Pennsylvania, 1866Died New York, New York, 1933

The Immigrant, circa 1904-06Oil on canvas

Tacoma Art Museum, Museum purchase,1980.10

George Luks was part of a group labeledThe Ashcan School for their gritty images

of the immigrant communities and streetlife of New York City. Their works, such asthis portrait by Luks of a tough, yetvulnerable child of the streets, representeda dramatic shift in subject matter. Westernart previously had been dominated bylandscapes, formal portraits, and historicaland mythological scenes. The artists ofThe Ashcan School who representedurban life and social issues were some ofthe first to bring these new subjects toAmerican art.

This work relates to one of the themesexplored in this exhibitionthe way in

which the definition of painting haschanged over the last 150 years.


6/43


7/43

Hugo KauffmanBorn Germany, 1844Died Germany, 1915

Flirtation, 1904Oil on panel

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. W.Hilding Lindberg, 1983.1.23


8/43

Pierre-Auguste RenoirBorn Limoges, France, 1841Died Cagnes-sur-Mer, France, 1919

Ttes de deux jeunes filles \ Les DeuxSoeurs, 1890Heads of Two Young Girls\The Two SistersOil on canvas


For 19th-century audiences, one of themore startling aspects of impressionistpainting was the visible brushstrokes. Inthe more traditional works to which theywere accustomed, like the Hugo Kauffmanand Karl Spitzweg paintings in this gallery,traces of how the artist had constructed animage were carefully covered so as not tointerfere with the realistic illusion. Theimpressionists, with their dots and slashesof paint, left the underlying process visibleso that howa work was made was as prominent as itssubject.


9/43

Karl SpitzwegBorn Munich, Germany, 1808Died Munich, Germany, 1885

Landschaft, 1885LandscapeOil on panel



10/43

Paul Horiuchi

Born Oishi, Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan,

1906Died Seattle, Washington, 1999Weathered, 1956Collage on board

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Paul andBernadette Horiuchi, 1988.1.1

Paul Horiuchi was a master of collage, theuse of small objects and fragments ofpaper to create artworks. He created hisfirst major collage in 1954 after seeingshredded layers of notices on a wall inSeattles Chinatown. For him, the layerssuggested fragmented messages or

memories eroded by time. As well, he usedthe long columns of calligraphic text andthe spiky, linear characters as abstractdesign elements.

This work relates to two of the themes youwill find in this exhibition: the use of textand symbols in art, and innovative use of

materials.


11/43


12/43

Hilda Morris

Born New York, New York, 1911

Died Portland, Oregon, 1991Guideposts, mid-1980sSumi-e on rice paper

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Carl Morris,1992.13

Sumi-e is an ancient, traditionally Asian,

form of painting with ink. Sumi-e artists tryto distill the essence of their subject intothe fewest possible strokes, creating simplebut eloquent compositions. Sumi-e alsoechoes the fluidity and expressivenessof calligraphy as uniquely showcased bythe Paul Horiuchi work in this exhibition.

Hilda Morris is best known for her abstractsculptures that reference organic formsand rhythms. However, delicate sumi-eimages such as this are equally powerfulgestural works.


13/43

Mark Calderon

Born Bakersfield, California, 1955

Deva, 1992Sugar palm twine over Styrofoam

Tacoma Art Museum, Museum purchase,1993.9

The title of this work, Deva, refers to agood spirit or supernatural presence in

Buddhism. Mark Calderons use of palmtwine for this sculpture suggests theBuddhist ideals of simplicity and freedomfrom materialism. Its shape also referencesother aspects of the tradition, echoing theforms of temple bells, stupas (shrines), andthe topknot of Buddha himself. The works

organic form and rough texture make itseem alive, as if inhabited by thebenevolent spirit of the title.


14/43

Sally Haley

Born Bridgeport, Connecticut, 1908

Died Portland, Oregon, 2007Untitled (Eggs and Lemons), 1973Acrylic on linen

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Michele Russo,1994.6

Still lifesgroups of objectshistorically

were often meant either as displays ofwealth or subtle lectures on luxury andvanity. One popular form is the trompeloeil (trick the eye) painting, so detailedthat viewers believe the objects are real.

Portland artist Sally Haleys still lifes are

usually understated arrangements ofdomestic objects or foods, set againstquietly colored, minimal backgrounds.However, Haleys subtle use of trompeloeil techniques and spatial illusions oftengive her works a slightly surreal quality.Another unique example of a still life in this

gallery is the brooch by Susan Ford.


15/43

Harry BertoiaBorn San Lorenzo, Pordenone, Italy, 1915Died Barto, Pennsylvania, 1978

Small Bush, circa 1965Welded bronze with verdigris patina

Tacoma Art Museum, Anonymous gift inhonor ofAlice Mailloux, 1997.8


16/43

William Ivey

Born Seattle, Washington, 1919

Died Seattle, Washington, 1992Untitled (Green Landscape), 1984Oil on canvas

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Margaret andRichard Aiken, from the Margaret AikenCollection, 1997.27.1

William Ivey studied painting at theCalifornia School of Fine Arts under MarkRothko (19031970) and Clyfford Still(19041980), leading members of thenewly emerging abstract expressionistmovement.This style is defined as art that is abstract

but also expressive or emotional in effect,and it deeply influenced Iveys own work.Iveys personal style is characterized bylyrical abstractions drawn from hissurroundings and built from layers of color.

Work by abstract expressionist Robert

Motherwelland other types of abstraction also can befound inthis gallery.


17/43


18/43

Ambrose Patterson

Born Daylesford, Victoria, Australia, 1877

Died Seattle, Washington, 1966Bathers, 1931Oil on canvas

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of the BellevueArt Museum, 1998.26.2


19/43

Kiff Slemmons

Born Maston, North Carolina, 1944

Leonardo da Vinci, circa 1990From the series Hands of the HeroesSterling silver

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Flora Book,1998.35.1

Kiff Slemmons makes jewelry that is rich in

historical, cultural, and literary references.Like a number of artists in this exhibition,she uses symbols to add layers of meaningto her works. This brooch is from her Handsof the Heroes series and represents eachsubjects contributions to the arts,humanities, or science. Leonardo da Vinci,

the hero of this work,is recognized for both his art and hisinventions, as symbolized by thepaintbrush and wheels athis fingertips.


20/43

Kathryn Glowen


Dress of Years, 1997Mixed media

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of the artist,2002.19

Kathryn Glowens Dress of Yearsmemorializes her friend Mamie L. Rand.

Each element of the work reflects anaspect of Rands life. For example, Randwas christened in the white cotton dress,and the 101 butterfly tags that adorn itstand for each of the years of her life.Glowens composition summarizes Randspersonal history beginning with an infants

garment and accumulating a century ofexperiences.

Dress of Years is one of several works inthe exhibition that is an assemblage, agroup of objects brought together tosuggest a particular story or idea.


21/43

Howard Kottler

Born Cleveland, Ohio, 1930

Died Seattle, Washington, 1989Layed Back, 1973Earthenware with ceramic glazed decals

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of the HowardKottler Testamentary Trust, 2002.41

Over the course of his career, Howard

Kottler dramatically changed his approachto ceramics abandoning the traditionalforms he had learned asa studio ceramicist.

In the mid-1960s, while teaching at theUniversity of Washington, Kottler began

incorporating humor, art historical andsocial commentary, irony, satire, and word-play into his ceramics. He alsoexperimented with form, adding glazes anddecals to ready-made objects. Here hesatirizes conceptual art, an art movementwhere text or ideas are substituted for

objects, creating his wood sculpture fromearthenware and wood-grain decals.


22/43

Sally Finch

Born Barnet, England, 1954

The Wasteland Revisited I, 2001Paper, dye, book text, graphite, and thread

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of the artist andFroelick Gallery, Portland, 2003.18


23/43

Dennis Evans

Born Yakima, Washington, 1946

Writing Lessons, 2002Mixed media and encaustic on canvas onboard

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of the artist andWoodside-Braseth Gallery, 2003.34 A-O

Dennis Evanss work was chosen as the

touchstone for this exhibition about themuseums collection because it has manyvoices. His works weave together aspectsof art history, linguistics, science,spirituality, and philosophy. He sees andexplores how things are interconnected.

The relationships between works in amuseums collection are equally complexand multilayered. Writing Lessons offersboth a visual and intellectual map forexploring and understanding some ofthese connections. As a starting point, allother artworks in this gallery are grouped

under three broad topics which relate tothe Evans: What is a Painting? Materialsand Process, and Texts and Symbols.


24/43

Nancy Mee

Born San Francisco, California, 1951

Hanging and Bound Spine, 1997Glass, steel, and rope

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of the artist andWoodside-Braseth Gallery, 2003.35 A-C


25/43

Sarah Ellen Taylor

Born Denver, Colorado, 1970

The Tarot Cards, 2003Etching, aquatint, and drypoint

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of ElizabethIngraham, 2003.70 A-EEEE


26/43

Robert Yoder

Born Danville, Virginia, 1962

Mather, 2002Painted wood

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of David Lewis inhonor of Clinton Williams, Donald Williams,Eileen Lewis, and Jane Ramm, 2003.73.3

Robert Yoders works call into question the

definition of painting. This artwork is partof a series created using recycled roadsigns, which he cut and reassembled tocreate the desired combinations of linesand colors. His final compositions oftenmimic the contours of the landscape wherethe signs used to stand. Yoder did not

further alter the painted surfaces of thesigns but left their distinctive colors,scrapes, and marks as reminders of theirformer history.


27/43

Donald Hazeltine

Born Portland, Oregon, 1950

Povera Bowl, 1994Acrylic, pastel, and plaster on panel

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of the artist,2005.26


28/43

Terry Toedtemeier


Died Portland, Oregon, 2008Untitled (Hidden History), 2004UltraChrome inkjet print on Epson PhotoRag Paper

Tacoma Art Museum, Museum purchasewith funds from the Dr. Lester BaskinMemorial Fund, 2005.28

Photographer Terry Toedtemeier isfascinated by the marks of time. Much ofhis work documents the geologic landscapeof the Northwest and the visible record ofits formation and destruction by thesteady, implacable forces of nature.

This image depicts the worn leather spineof an 1867 album of Columbia Riverphotographs by the legendary Americanlandscape photographer Carleton E.Watkins (18241916). Inside is the wordhistory written by renowned calligrapher

Fulgencio Seraqui (active 19th century),who later collaborated with Watkins onother projects. Why and how the word waswritten inside the books spine is amystery.


29/43


30/43

Russell Day

Born Mead, Washington, 1912

Moon-Sand-Forever, 1970sSilver, pebbles, black pearls, moonstones,and agate

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Russell andMarjorie Day, 2005.31.4


31/43

Morris GravesBorn Fox Valley, Oregon, 1910Died Loleta, California, 2001

Untitled, circa 1935Oil on burlap

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Donald andAnn Frothingham, 2006.11

The large black bird in this image,constructed with thick, rough swirls ofpaint, radiates drama and intensity. Birdswere important symbols for Morris Graves,representing his consciousness, and in thatrole revealing his own emotions and spiritualconcerns.

This type of intensely personal painting is

called expressionism, an early 20th-centuryart movement that emphasized theexpression of the artists inner experiences.Graves was one of the group of artistscalled The Northwest Mystics (includingalso Mark Tobey and Guy Anderson whoseworks are on view in this gallery) for the

philosophical and spiritual content of theirworks.


32/43

Sarah Hood


Malden Avenue East, 1999Fromthe series Structural Series #1:DecompositionSterling silver and Chinese lantern pods

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Donna andRalph Briskin, 2007.34

Sarah Hoods jewelry combines traditionaljewelry-making materials with everydayobjects, from dollarms to leaves. Her art examines thenatural world,its shapes and designs.

This necklace is part of her Decompositionseries that explores the transient nature oforganic material and the delights and risksof building objects from fragile naturalsubstances. The resulting works areelegant paradoxessolid and ephemeral,structured and in flux.


33/43

Susan Ford

Born Fort Worth, Texas, 1951

Beetlemania, 1990Engraved oil painting on prehistoricmammoth ivory, 14k gold, mixed media

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Lloyd Herman,2007.43 A-B


34/43

Maude Kerns


Died Eugene, Oregon, 1965Yang and Yin, 1943Oil on canvas

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of LeslieBrockelbank through Bill Rhoades, 2007.51

The geometric shapes in this painting are

part of the vocabulary for a particular formof abstraction called non-objective art. Thestyle originated with the artist WassilyKandinsky (18661944), who believedabstractions should make no reference tothe physical world but instead expressspiritual concepts.

Maude Kerns was one of the few Northwestartists who practiced non-objectivepainting. Through her ties to New YorksMuseum of Non-Objective Art (now theGuggenheim) and her decades as ateacher at the University of Oregon, she

helped bring avant-garde artistic ideas togenerations of Northwest art students.


35/43

Utagawa KuniyoshiBorn Edo [Tokyo], Japan, 1797Died Edo [Tokyo], Japan, 1861

Lion Dancer, 184748Woodblock print

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Al and BetsyBuck in memory of Alfred Eliab Buck andEllen Baker Buck, T2006-30-48 A-B

Woodblock prints such as this one are

known as ukiyo-e (images of the floatingworld) because they document everydaylife in Japanits streets, markets, festivals,and pleasure districts. The actors of theKabuki theater are some of the mostpopular subjects for ukiyo-e. These imagesare carefully coded with symbolicmeanings: the actors posture andexpression, clothing, surroundings, andother details can identify a particular roleor even a specific performance.


36/43

Whiting Tennis

Born Hampton, Virginia, 1959

Blue Tarp, 2007Acrylic and collage on canvas

Tacoma Art Museum, Museum purchase inhonor of Shari and John Behnke with fundsfrom Edie Adams, Cathy and MichaelCasteel, Janet Wright Ketcham, Aileen andBen Krohn, Greg Kucera and Larry Yocom,

Janice Niemi and Dennis Braddock, GraceNordhoff and Jonathan Beard, Lucy andHerb Pruzan, Carolyn and Kevin Reid, KimRichter, Laurie and George Schuchart,Rebecca and Alexander Stewart, Virginiaand Bagley Wright, 2008.2

The surfaces of Whiting Tenniss works arecomplex collages of found objects andimages, paint and pencil, glue and tapewhatever comes to hand. They often areillusionistic, resembling one material butactually made from another. The marks onthe surface ofBlue Tarp and other Tennis

works suggest the random dings andscrapes that come from wear and tear,reflecting his interest in the neglected anddiscarded. Blue Tarp also brings together avariety of other styles and techniquesrepresented in this exhibition, including


37/43

assemblage, trompe loeil (trick the eye)painting,and abstraction.


38/43

Thomas Haukaas

Born San Juan, Puerto Rico, 1950

Sicangu Lakota, enrolled on the Rosebudreservation, South DakotaMore Time Expected, 2002Handmade ink and pencil on antique ledgerpaper

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Greg Kuceraand Larry Yocom in honor of Rock Hushka

Thomas Haukaas blends the historical withthe contemporary, linking his art to hisroots as a Sicangu Lakota. This workreferences a form of Native American artknown as ledger drawing. Plains Indiantribes used buffalo hide for paintings and

drawings until the buffalo herds weredestroyed in the late 19th century. Artistsadapted by transferring their flattened,colorful images to paper and cloth.

Haukaas depicts a band of Lakota movingto a new territory, a periodic event that

ensured survival of the tribe. The riderlesshorse at the center is a reminder of newthreats to the LakotaHIV and AIDS.


39/43

Pierre-Auguste RenoirBorn Limoges, France, 1841Died Cagnes-sur-Mer, France, 1919

Pommes sur un Plat, date unknownPlate of ApplesOil on linen



40/43

This painting is hung in an unusual waybecause it is double-sided and cannot hangflat against the wall. Below is an image of

the painting on the other side.


41/43


Tawara Toda and the Dragon Maiden,mid 1840sWoodblock print

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. James W.Lyon, 1971.129.14


42/43


Saky-no-day Akisuki, 184042[The poet, Saky-no-day Akisuki, on apalace veranda on a windy night viewingthe moon]From the series Hyaku-nin isshu [TheHundred Poets]Woodblock print

Tacoma Art Museum, Gift of Al and BetsyBuck in memory of Alfred Eliab Buck andEllen Baker Buck, T2006-30-20

Woodblock prints such as this one areknown as ukiyo-e (images of the floatingworld) because they document everydaylife in Japanits streets, festivals,landscapes, and pleasure districts as wellas celebrities such as actors and famouspoets. This work is from an album calledOne Hundred Poets that pairs a portrait ofeach poet with one of their poems.


43/43

Woodblock prints are carefully coded withsymbolic meanings, details that helpidentify the subject, place, or setting. Here,

the flowers on the poets kimono and theflowering grasses identify the season asautumn as mentioned in the accompanyingpoem:

See how clear and brightIs the moonlight finding waysThrough the riven cloudsThat, with drifting autumn wind,Gracefully float in the sky.

Documents

Object Labels Speaking Parts FINAL 9.15.08