photo: Hunter Armistead
artist profile
Red Grooms In a New York Frame of Mind by Nancy Cason
R
ed Grooms is as animated and accessible as his art. Over the crackle of the speakerphone, he greeted me with the warmth and enthusiasm of a longtime friend. Although we’ve never met, his voice, softened with a trace of familiar Southern drawl, made it easy to imagine the boyish, redheaded artist who left Nashville in 1957 to take on New York—and, in doing so, put his distinctive stamp on American art. The images spread out around me—highlights of his vast artistic output in paintings, prints, films, sculpture, and mixed-media installations—attest to fifty-plus years of groundbreaking innovation. At age 75, Red Grooms has just installed his largest work ever and shows no sign of slowing down.
NashvilleArts.com
August 2O12 | 23