WESTERN ART COLLECTOR MAGAZINE TAKES A LOOK AT THE FORTHCOMING "OUT WEST" EXHIBITION

Three Perspectives

Three artists of the American West, each with his own take and unique philosophy, will show their latest work in an exhibition at Maxwell Alexander Gallery in Los Angeles, March 9 through 30.

Howard Post was raised on a ranch in Arizona, became a cowboy, competed in rodeos, received his MFA and worked as a commercial artist before dedicating his life to portraying ranch life in his oil and pastel paintings.

Gary Ernest Smith grew up on a cattle ranch and farm in rural Oregon where “the demands of farm life taught me the values of discipline and self-reliance.” After receiving his MFA he painted murals and later turned to studio painting of rural scenes inspired by the work of Edward Hopper and Maynard Dixon.

Bryan Haynes grew up among the rolling hills of Missouri and later received his degree in commercial design. He returned to Missouri, appreciating its character in a new way and with a new appreciation for the way regionalists like Thomas hart Benton responded to it. He considers his work a continuation of the regionalist tradition.

In his Sledge Crew, Haynes depicts a once-common occurrence in rural America— the circus coming to town in a time between the wars. The graceful rope walker, exotic animals and clown parading in front of the giant tent are brightly lit in celebration of the festive experience. In the foreground, forming a shadowed frame are the behind-the-scenes workers, driving a spoke into the ground. Haynes’ sinuous line and soft palette recall those of the regionalists who preceded him.

Smith often reduces a scene to its elements with a strong emphasis on design. His portraits are often isolated against a plain ground, focusing on the character of the individual. In Sitting Bull, the Lakota Sioux leader who united his people to defend their land is depicted in profile with a single eagle feather in his hair. He stands in front of a painted buffalo hide showing scenes from Native versus government conflicts.

Post paints the nearly timeless life of the cowboy and rancher. Although there have been changes in their lives, the hard work continues. It includes constant maintenance of the ranch buildings and fences. Known for his paintings from a bird’s-eye view, in Vintage Pens, he takes an uncharacteristic perspective from below the shed and pens on the hill. The high, hot sun casts short shadows illustrating one of the many extremes the pens have endured over time, repaired and rebuilt over and again by the ranch hands.

Western Art Collector Magazine Highlights Maxwell Alexander Gallery

Maxwell Alexander Gallery is located in the South Park district of downtown Los Angeles, just a couple streets over from the Convention Center and Staples Center. In recent years, downtown LA has become one of the most sought after locations in Los Angeles. Maxwell Alexander Gallery is continuing its service to out-of-state clientele but has also gained a group of new collectors this past year who are new residents of downtown LA. As a result, sales have doubled in 2018 and the gallery looks forward to continue the trend in 2019. Keeping things interesting with multiple exhibitions running each month in its front and south galleries, the gallery’s primary focus is on high-quality art. “I can say with confidence, no other gallery in the Southwestern market has a roster as strong as ours. We are developing new artists’ careers, but we are lucky to have the biggest names all under on roof,” says Beau Alexander, president. In March, Maxwell Alexander Gallery is hosting a three-person exhibition featuring legendary painters Howard Post, Gary Ernest-Smith and Bryan Haynes. In April, an exhibition will be held for Grant Redden, his Los Angeles debut. In May the gallery hosts the thirst consecutive solo exhibition for Eric Bowman.

Western Art Collector Previews Cumulus Show

Sky Sonnets

Maxwell Alexander Gallery is hosting a group exhibition titled Cumulus starting March 9 and continuing through the month. The show highlights cloud- centric works featuring brand new paintings by Tony Abeyta, Eric Bowman, Scott Burdick, Glenn Dean, Phil Epp, Danny Galieote, Logan Maxwell Hagege, Bryan Haynes, Brett Allen Johnson, Michael Klein, Ed Mell, Eric Merrell, John Moyers, Terri Kelly Moyers, Dennis Ziemienski and others.

Bowman’s submission, Levels and Degrees, was inspired by the artist’s recent work done on a trip to southern Utah. “The monumental land formations there are really amazing in both size and shape, and support the focal subject and vertical design of the large clouds in this composition,” says Bowman. “They give it more of an overall large-scale, heroic feel. I also wanted to show the juxtaposition of land masses that are eons old, surrounded by vaporous entities that were just born that very morning.” Using textured layers of paint to forge out a depth and sense of scale, Bowman distills the sensation of wonder and awe when surrounded by such grand natural scenes. “I like to idealize the flow of the line, and clouds that allow just that. They come in all shapes and sizes, so I was able to not only create the scale and shape I wanted, but also build texture upon texture by allowing drying time in between painting sessions.”

Inspiration for Ziemienski’s piece Regarding the Trail came while exploring the majestic red rocks of northern Arizona and New Mexico. “What I found to be most exciting was the mysterious light and shadow of the rocks inspiring a balance with the dramatic upheaval of the clouds—a world where you can lose yourself,” the artist says. Evoking an almost surreal sense of place, the painting’s small subjects stroll beneath a massive cloud, which looms over the canyons with an opposing, yet awe-inspiring, presence

Tranquil and serene, Epp’s Hilltop Trio captures a restful moment between a small team of wild horses as they gaze at a distant horizon. “I have the privilege of living near large ranches that house large groups of horses,” says Epp. “Horses on a hilltop with a big sky backdrop is something that I personally observe on a weekly basis. I’m always inspired by the view and the painting subject.” Epp’s passion for sprawling sky scenes is particularly apparent in this recent work, with bright, vivid blues and buoyant whites dominating the landscape. “This painting is more about western scale, open space and distance than it is about horses,” he explains.

Burdick’s Grandma’s Clouds tells the story of a girl and her family from Shawnee, Oklahoma. Last year, the artist visited his painting’s subject, Serena, at her grandmother’s house to do a series of drawings of her and her relatives. Serena, who is half Choctaw and half Ponca, offered the opportunity to capture this scene. “In between drawing sessions, we would go outside on the ranch and take photographs, which are what I did this painting from when I got home to my North Carolina studio after the show.” From his references, Burdick set out to build a sense of communion between land and sky. “For this painting, I wanted to create a dynamic composition where Serena was an integrated part of the landscape and the clouds. My hope was that the varied angles in the grasses, plus the thick application of paint, would create a sense of movement in the scene. I wanted the abstract chaos of the grass to act as counterpoint to the refined painting of Serena’s face and the soft serenity of the sky. The fact that she was looking into the distance beyond the frame of the canvas hopefully creates a bit of mystery for the viewer to wonder about.”

The Cumulus group exhibition will open March 9 at Maxwell Alexander Gallery in Los Angeles, California.

 For more work from Cumulus, click here.