Alumni in the Arts
䉱 Deane G. Keller ’58 䉳 “Figure Study, Cairo,” charcoal, 60 in. x 34 in.
Deane G. Keller ’58 Figure as Metaphor By Loueta Chickadaunce “To draw is to know by hand—to have the proof that [St.] Thomas demanded.” —John Berger 22
Taft Bulletin Spring 2003
A name well known to all Taft students who frequented Mark Potter’s art room was Deane G. Keller ’58, an extraordinary artist whose father, Deane, was a distin-
guished painter, teacher, and member of the Class of 1919. His father was a profound influence for Deane. Mr. Keller’s teaching was passionate and clear; it made him direct, sometimes blunt, in his criticism, while consistently offering ways to improve. It was an approach Deane found again at Taft. “If something goes poorly, fix it. Taft gave that to me,” he said. I spoke with Deane while he was busy selecting work for a March show at the Carriage Barn Arts Center in New Canaan, Conn. The exhibition is mostly figure drawings inspired by his travels in Egypt and Syria. The drawings are large, around 60 in. x 34 in. His work of the last 15 years has been mostly drawings, with a few paintings scattered among them. Deane is both patient and insistent when he talks about art. “Drawings don’t lie,” he noted. “The quick and casual shows, the struggle shows, the substance or lack of substance shows. Drawing keeps you on a sure course of recognizing and organizing your own thoughts.” He quoted John Ruskin, “Art is about gathering and governing.” The gathering, Deane explained, is about attaining the raw material, the field sketches; it is about addressing life as you discover it. He has thousands of drawings done on location. They represent the start of countless ideas. “You govern with