A Collection of Small Works
By Robert Pummill
These Texas Hills
By Robert Pummill
214 W. Main Street Fredericksburg, Texas Info@InSightGallery.com InsightGallery.com 830.997.9920 These Texas Hills A Collection of Small Works
© 2023 InSight Gallery
All works of art © 2023 Robert
PummillInsight Gallery
214 West Main Street
Fredericksburg, Texas 78624 insightgallery.com
Pummill Studio robertpummill.com
Forward written by: Norman Kolpas
Printed by:
Capitol Printing, Austin Texas
All Rights Reserved.
No Part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photography, recording or other information storage or retreival system, nor may the pages be applied to any materials, cut, trimmed or sized to alter the existing trim sizes or matted or framed with the intent to create other products for sale or resale or profit in any manner whatesoever, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.
1
Small Works from a Texas Hill Country Master
For almost half a century, Robert Pummill has dedicated his prodigious talent to depicting the legacy of the American West and the Texas Hill Country he calls home. Most often, the paintings that result measure in feet rather than inches — a scale worthy of that expansive rolling landscape and its wide-open skies. Sometimes, however, his feelings for the subjects express themselves in artworks of a more intimate scale, like the abundant collection of landscape works featured in this very special show.
Though diminutive, these paintings should not in any way be considered the sorts of plein-air studies so many artists execute on site as reference for later studio compositions. Nothing is dashed-off or “sketchy.” Pummill has devoted to them the same level of thoughtful consideration, careful composition, and impeccable brushwork he brings to his larger canvases. Each artwork possesses its own unique power to draw and hold viewers’ gazes and connect with their spirits.
So where does that power come from? While Texas Hill Country offers endless inspiration, compelling collectors to surround themselves with art that celebrates the region’s beauty, Pummill himself contends that the artist must bring something more. “The subject is important,” he says. “But you don’t buy a painting because it has a barn in it and you like barns. You are drawn to it because of the way the artist has presented the subject.”
Pummill’s presentations distill the very essence of their subjects through his keen compositional skill and impeccable brushwork. “A good painting should always have a focal point,” he explains. “There should be an entry point that allows the artist to lead the viewer into and through the composition to the focal point, while trying to make the journey
interesting through the use of elements that complement the subject.” The focal point itself, meanwhile, “is enhanced by the use of the strongest contrast and most intense colors.” Other elements such as trees, bushes, and cacti, he notes, “should be grouped into interesting and pleasing patterns tied to the edge of the composition, if possible, to avoid loose elements that might distract the viewer.” The result, though executed with such exacting deliberation, should nonetheless look and feel entirely natural and inviting. “If a painting is not pleasing and interesting to look at, I have not done my job.”
Every one of these small paintings by Robert Pummill can justly be considered a job well done by a proven, widely acknowledged master of the Texas landscape.
2
A Cloudy Morning • 16 x 20 • OIL 3
views
*detail
4
Summer Coreopsis • 11 x 14 • oil 5
May Morning • 12 x 18 • oil 6
“Thepatternscreatedby themorninglightfilteringthrough thetreescombinedwiththepatchesofbluebonnetscreatea kaleidoscopeofcolorontheground.Capturingthiswasan enjoyablechallenge.”
*detail views
• 16
20 • oil
Morning Shadows
x
7
-RobertPummill
8
Soft Light of Morning • 12 x 16 • oil 9
Still of Use • 12 x 16 • oil 10
Twin Oaks at Twilight • 16 x 20 • oil 11
*detail views
12
13
Green
to Gold • 9 x 11 • oil
Shadows On The Hills • 11 x 14 • oil
14
Early Light • 14 x 18 • oil 15
A Summer Afternoon • 9 x 12 • oil 16
“Howdoesonecapturedramainalandscape,ascenewithno people,noanimals,noinvigoratingtaletospin? Howdoes onemakesuchascenecompelling,imaginative,inshort, dramatic?Theansweristouseprimarilythesametoolsasone doesinpaintingsthattellastory-carefulcomposition, variationsincolorandlight,asenseofmovement,andan activeimagination. Oftenthetaskofalandscapepainteristhe creationofaspecificatmostphereratherthantherecounting ofaparticularstory.”
-MichaelDuty
museumdirector,author,auctionspecialistandartconsultant
20 •
17
Cactus in Bloom at Sunset • 16 x
oil
*detail views
18
Season of Color • 9 x 14 • oil
19
Past
20
Its Prime • 9 x 12 • oil
April View • 9 x 11 • oil 21
In The Spring • 11 x 14 • oil 22
*detail views
• 16
20 • oil 23
Lone Oak At Sunset
x
24
Midnight • 12 x 16 • oil 25
Northwest of Bandera • 8 x 12 • oil 26
“Someofthemostinterestingviewsinthehillscontaina distant,rockybluff. Thepatternsonthebluffscreatedby passingcloudsmakeaninterestingsubject.”
*detail views
• 16
20 • oil 27
Spring Comes To The Hills
x
-RobertPummill
28
Misty Morning in April • 8 x 12 • oil 29
Spring Rain • 12 x 16 • oil 30
Summer Days • 8 x 10 • oil
31
Over The Valley • 12 x 16 • oil 32
Clouds
•
•
33
Spring Palette
9 x 12
oil
Autumn Sunset • 12 x 16 • oil 34
“ForthoseofuswholovetheTexasHillCountry,Pummill hasaninateabilitytocreateimagesofplacesthatwecould swearwe’vebeenbefore. Adistantviewthatwe’veseen,an oakfilledpasturefromaranchweknow. Yet,allofitisfrom hisimagination. Landscapesthataresomehowuniversaland individualizedallatonce.”
-ElizabethHarris Owner/director,InSightGallery
*detail views
Flowers • 16 x 20 • oil 35
Spring
36
Early Morning Light • 12 x 16 • oil 37
Fields in Summer
38
• 8 x 12 • oil
•
39
Bluebonnets and Poppies • 9 x 14
oil
A
• 12 x 16 • oil 40
Rocky Slope
*detail views
Morning in the Hills • 16 x 20 • oil 41
Early
42
Sunrise in Cactus Country • 18 x 24 • oil 43
dramaoftherisingsunintheTexashills.”
*detail views “Oneofmyfavoritechallengesistocapturethecolorand
-RobertPummill
44
Every April • 9 x 12 • oil 45
Early Summer • 8 x 12 • oil 46
The Road To Town • 16 x 20 • oil 47
*detail views
48
May Sunset • 12 x 16 • oil 49
Fall in the Hills • 11 x 14 • oil 50
• 11 x 14 • oil 51
Fallen
An Old Rock Wall • 8 x 12 • oil 52
Bluebonnets in the Morning • 16 x 20 • oil 53
views
-LadyBirdJohnson
*detail
“Whereflowersbloom,sodoeshope.”
54
Hill Country Morning • 12 x 16 • oil 55
Needs A Little TLC • 12 x 16 • oil 56
*detail views
57
These
Wooded
Hills • 18 x 24 • oil
58
Spring •
12 •
59
Each
8 x
oil
Vista • 9 x 12 • oil 60
Summer
•
61
Sunlight Through The Oaks • 12 x 16
oil
April In The Hills • 12 x 16 • oil 62
“Atsundownthetreesandotherfoliagearebathedinagolden lightthatcomesatnoothertime.Thisismyattemptat depictingthisspecialtimeofday.”
*detail views
Golden Light at Sunset • 16 x 20 • oil 63
-RobertPummill
64
65
Texas Paintbrush • 9 x 12 • oil
Autumn Arrives • 9 x 14 • oil
66
*detail views
A Spring Day In The Hills • 16 x 20 • oil 67
68
Spring Sunset • 12 x 16 • oil 69
Mesquite • 8 x 12 • oil 70
“IbelieveRobertPummilltobeoneofthemostgiftedand collectedTexaslandscapepaintersofourtimeanditisan honortoknowandrepresenthim.Hisstunningworksofart, includinghisTexasHillCountrylandscapes,westernstage coachpieces,anddustycattledrivescenes,capturethebeauty andgritoftheAmericanWestinawaythatisunmatchedby anyotherartist.
Withatirelessworkethicandaninnatetalentforhiscraft, Mr.Pummillpaintsfromsunuptosundown,sevendaysa week,tocapturetheessenceoflifeintheWestandbringitto lifeoncanvas.Wehavebeenhonoredtorepresenthimsince theinceptionofInSightGallery,andheremainsoneofour topproducingandsellingartists.
Mr.Pummill’sworkisatestamenttothepowerofdedication teamedwithnaturaltalent,andweareproudtoshareitwith artloversworldwide.”
A Spring Afternoon • 16 x 20 • oil 71
*detail views
-AdeleWells salesdirector,InSightGallery
72
*detail views
When Fields Are Blue • 16 x 20 • oil
73
74
75
“IhavebeenabletocontinuetopaintingwhatIenjoymost andthatiswhatmakesmethemostfortunateofmen.”
-RobertPummill
76 Major
•
•
Work: In The Texas Hills
66 x 86
oil
Notes:
77
Table of Contents 4 A CLOUDY MORNING 40 A ROCKY SLOPE 72 A SPRING AFTERNOON 68 A SPRING DAY IN THE HILLS 16 A SUMMER AFTERNOON 52 AN OLD ROCK WALL 62 APRIL IN THE HILLS 21 APRIL VIEW 66 AUTUMN ARRIVES 34 AUTUMN SUNSET 39 BLUEBONNETS AND POPPIES 54 BLUEBONNETS IN THE MORNING 18 CACTUS IN BLOOM AT SUNSET 32 CLOUDS OVER THE VALLEY 59 EACH SPRING 15 EARLY LIGHT 42 EARLY MORNING IN THE HILLS 37 EARLY MORNING LIGHT 46 EARLY SUMMER 45 EVERY APRIL 50 FALL IN THE HILLS 51 FALLEN 38 FIELDS IN SUMMER 64 GOLDEN LIGHT AT SUNSET 13 GREEN TO GOLD 55 HILL COUNTRY MORNING 22 IN THE SPRING 24 LONE OAK AT SUNSET 6 MAY MORNING 49 MAY SUNSET 70 MESQUITE 25 MIDNIGHT 29 MISTY MORNING IN APRIL 8 MORNING SHADOWS 56 NEEDS A LITTLE TLC 26 NORTHWEST OF BANDERA 20 PAST ITS PRIME 19 SEASON OF COLOR 14 SHADOWS ON THE HILLS 9 SOFT LIGHT OF MORNING 28 SPRING COMES TO THE HILLS 36 SPRING FLOWERS 33 SPRING PALETTE 30 SPRING RAIN 69 SPRING SUNSET 10 STILL OF USE 5 SUMMER COREOPSIS 31 SUMMER DAYS 60 SUMMER VISTA 61 SUNLIGHT THROUGH THE OAKS 44 SUNRISE IN CACTUS COUNTRY 65 TEXAS PAINTBRUSH 48 THE ROAD TO TOWN 58 THESE WOODED HILLS 12 TWIN OAKS AT TWILIGHT 74 WHEN FIELDS ARE BLUE 78
