Davidson Galleries artist Barbara Robertson will be giving a short talk about the Ensor/Baselitz exhibition at Seattle Art Museum on Friday July 23rd at 6:30 pm as part of the My Favorite Things series of tours. She will talk about what she loves about the work and take questions. Attendees should gather in the Forum (the big space by the admissions desk).
European artists James Ensor and Georg Baselitz worked during very different time periods, came from very different places and never knew each other. Their shared interests in the grotesque, political agitation, the suffering of war and the figure, however, bind them in unexpected ways. Continue reading at seattleartmuseum.org…
The July 2010 edition of art ltd. includes a review of Davidson Galleries’ exhibition, The Estate of Wallace Engstrom:
The Seattle collector Wallace Engstrom died last year at 85 after acquiring over 800 artworks since he began collecting in 1985. Often accompanied by a friend, his framer Louie Congdon, Engstrom favored figurative and narrative art, though not exclusively, and was among the rare breed of collectors who never had an eye for art-as-investment; yet, according to Congdon, “everything he touched turned to gold. If he bought a stock, it went up.” The same could be said for many of the younger local artists he acquired early on such as Susan Bennerstrom, Paul Green, and Francesca Sundsten. At first eclectic and uneven like the most enthusiastic of collectors, Engstrom’s eye gradually improved though he was neither art historian nor connoisseur. However, viewing treasures, mostly prints and works on paper, by Max Beckmann The Shooting Gallery, (1921), Thomas Hart Benton Investigation, (1937), Lovis Corinth Faun and Nymph, (1914) and others, his taste for scenes of human compassion and conflict shines through.
First Thursday opening reception: August 5, 6-8pm.
Through August 28
NATURAL AND URBAN LANDSCAPES
LESLIE CAIN • ELAINE COOMBS • WILLIAM E. ELSTON
DAN GUALDONI • PHILIP KOCH • EMILY LEONARD
Elston. Near the Gare d’Lest. Oil on canvas, 2004. 54 x 72 inches.
The August exhibition at Davidson Galleries is devoted to the ‘outside’ – natural and urban scenes. Works by six artists: Leslie Cain (WA), Elaine Coombs (CA), William E. Elston (WA), Dan Gualdoni (MO), Philip Koch (MD), and Emily Leonard (TN) all approach landscape differently. The works range from descriptive, to impressionistic, to atmospheric, to expressionistic. The scale varies widely from modest to grand.
What I See, the group exhibition currently on view at Davidson Galleries, received an excellent review this week in the Seattle Times from arts writer Michael Upchurch:
The four artists in the new group show at Davidson Galleries all do figurative work. But that doesn’t mean they’re offering bland, conservative fare.
Instead, the visions in “What I See” are as unsettling and ambiguous as they are potent. The subjects addressed range from religion to politics to environmental concerns. The artistry, whether it’s in oil paintings, etchings or drawings, is uniformly impressive.
First Thursday opening reception: July 1, 6-8pm.
Through July 31
‘What I See’
ALICE LEORA BRIGGS • STEPHANIE FROSTAD
MARTIN LANGFORD • LISA SWEET
Briggs. Spit, 2010. Sgraffito drawing on panel. 25 x 28 inches.
The July exhibition at Davidson Galleries, ‘What I See’, will feature the work of four artists: Alice Leora Briggs, Stephanie Frostad, Martin Langford and Lisa Sweet. These four were selected for the clarity of their focus on a specific message. The subjects sometimes, as with Lisa Sweet, reflect religious associations while for others the seed is social or political. Frostad’s work often uses a specific gesture carrying multiple associations, or fresh insight as in a traditional biblical story such as The Prodigal Son. Briggs often employs a contemporary scene peopled with visual quotes from art works painted centuries earlier for an effective, though jarring juxtaposition. Langford’s images are pure social commentary responding to the human impact on his earthly environment.
Frostad
Sweet
Langford
Posted June 16th, 2010 by Web Administrator under Exhibitions
with live music by Tyler Potts, light refreshments and a walk-through discussion with the artist
BARBARA ROBERTSON
Gray Shift: Works on Paper, Projection & Animation
Continues through June 26
Northwest artist Barbara Robertsonʼs new body of work challenges the boundaries between still
and time based media, expanding her imagery into dynamic combinations of still and moving images.
