Texas Art Collectors Organization 25th Anniversary Collectors Catalogue

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION 25th Anniversary Collectors Catalogue

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION 25th Anniversary Collectors Catalogue

Compiled and Edited by Fred Van’t Slot and W. Russ Aikman

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Shared Interests and Experiences Celebrating the broad spectrum of Texas Art and the diversity of our members and their collections.

the idea for this catalogue emerged out of discussions about how to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Texas Art Collectors Organization. As the Board weighed the options, one thing became clear: We participate in TACO, not because of the great works of art we own, but because of the shared passion we have in collecting Early Texas Art. So the question became, how can we make this passion tangible? By conveying the stories of our members through images and words. This catalogue is intended to express those shared interests and experiences, while at the same time celebrate the broad spectrum of Texas art and the diversity of our members and their collections.

With that in mind, we asked TACO members to submit two special pieces from their collection that celebrate their collecting journey and remind them of why they collect Early Texas Art. We also asked members to share their thoughts as to why the pieces submitted were so memorable. As the images and the accompanying stories came rolling in, we were repeatedly surprised at the diversity and quality of the submissions. Yes, there were many pieces by well-known Texas artists one would expect. Other submissions were by living artists and some were historic artists that had us going to our research books to find out why we had never known about them.

Doesn’t that encapsulate why we collect and belong to a group like TACO? As you look through this catalogue, we hope you will feel the art provides insight into who our members are as collectors. And maybe a little about them as a person. We hope you enjoy this catalogue as much as we enjoyed putting it together.

-FVS & WRA 3

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Preface

by D. Jack Davis, Ph.D.

from the earliest days, arts clubs and organizations have played a significant role in the development of the visual arts in Texas. The first art association, the Van Dyke Art Club, was founded in San Antonio in 1886 by Robert Onderdonk. Onderdonk moved to Dallas in 1893 and founded the Dallas Art Students League. Other cities followed suit. In Houston the Houston Public School Art League was founded in 1900, and the Texas Fine Arts Association was organized in Austin in 1911.1 In the intervening years, art organizations were formed throughout the state in communities large and small.

Women played a particularly strong role in the creation of these organizations, especially in the smaller communities.

While many struggled, others were very successful, and were the sole promoters of the arts in their communities. Had it not been for these organizations, many communities would have been cultural wastelands.

Most of the organizations focused in a general way on the arts as they sought to bring culture and enlightenment to their respective communities. While they usually included some activities and programming related to local artists and performers, very few focused solely on art and artists in the State of Texas. One exception is the Texas Fine Arts Association which was founded on April 6, 1911 in honor of Elizabeth Ney. Started by 11 women who wanted to establish a shrine for Ney, pave the way for a state art gallery, and promote and give identity to the arts in Texas, it claims to be the earliest organization to promote art activity about Texas art throughout the state. Although started by a group of women, the first officers of the Association were all men except for the secretary, assistant secretary and treasurer.

The organization is probably best known for the exhibitions which it sponsored and the visual arts touring program 4

which was started in 1927. Within two years the Association was receiving more requests for the circuit exhibitions than it could fill.2 The Texas Art Collectors Organization (TACO), which began 25 years ago in the Dallas area under the leadership of George Palmer, builds upon these early antecedents with its goals being to further the understanding and appreciation of early Texas art through education, study, debate and exhibitions. A strong focus of the organization has been upon the collector of Early Texas Art, which is often defined as art made or produced in Texas or by Texans 40 years prior to the present. Holding monthly meetings with a wide range of programs and events, the organization has brought to its members information about an array of artists and their work, some of whom are household names and others about whom little is known. Through these programs and the monthly e-newsletter, TACO has brought together collectors, artists, museum professionals, academicians, and others interested in Early Texas Art for education, discussion and debate.

Often holding their meetings in the homes of collectors of Early Texas Art, TACO members have had an opportunity to

Early Texas Art is often defined as art made or produced in Texas or by Texans 40 years prior to the present.

see a wide variety of Early Texas Art and learn from the collecting experiences of their friends and colleagues.

TACO has been a model for spawning other groups interested in Early Texas Art, including a statewide organization, the Center for the Advancement and Study of Early Texas Art (CASETA), which holds an annual symposium and promotes interest in Early Texas Art in a variety of other ways. A group in Houston, the Houston Earlier Texas Art Group (HETAG), is also built on the TACO model.

Given the focus of TACO on collectors and collecting, it is very appropriate that the organization would put together a catalog featuring work from the collections of its members. With each collector/member choosing two works from their respective collections and writing a brief statement about why they are their favorite works exemplifies the nature of collecting and the pleasure that it brings to those who collect the work. In its first 25 years TACO has made a major contribution to furthering interest in Early Texas Art and promoting scholarship about the art and the artists who produced it. The organization is poised to do even greater work in the future.

Ron Tyler, “Visual Arts,” Handbook of Texas Online, accessed November 03, 2021, https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/visual-arts. Published by the Texas State Historical Association.

1

Alice M. Shukalo, “Texas Fine Arts Association,” Handbook of Texas Online, accessed October 26, 2021, https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/texas-fine-arts-association.

2

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left to right: Marc Bateman, Bill Cheek and George Palmer, Meadows Museum, 2008. Many TACO members attended the symposium held there in conjunction with the dual exhibitions Jerry Bywaters: Interpreter of the Southwest and Jerry Bywaters: Lone Star Printmaker.

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Texas Art Collectors Organization Background and History

by W. Russ Aikman

to tell the story of taco properly one must go back to the early 1980s, when the nascent texas art collecting scene was in its infancy. In those days less than a dozen serious collectors were active in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Included in that group were Mike Chitty, Claude Albritton, Ed Denari, Robert Brousseau, Russell Tether, Bill Cheek, and Ace Cook. There was no annual symposium on Texas art. Area museums held sporadic exhibitions focusing on individual Texas artists. In Dallas only two galleries were regularly selling Texas art – Valley House and Bill Johnson Fine Art. Most people thought “Texas art” referred to images of cowboys and Indians. And the last general reference book on the subject came out in 1935.1 Things began to change in the mid-1980s. Exhibitions on Texas art were held in conjunction with the Texas Sesquicentennial at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston,2 the Amarillo Art Museum, and the Old Jail Art Center in Albany.

Most notable was the Lone Star Regionalism exhibition at the Dallas Museum of Art in 1985.3 Exposure to the art of the Dallas Nine and other Regionalists sparked great interest in Texas art of the 1930s and 40s. Sensing the level of interest was sufficient to support a business, David Dike opened his eponymous gallery in 1986. This gave collectors another venue to learn about Texas art, and to add to their collections.

During the early 1990s interest in Texas art continued to grow, although at a limited pace. One reason was the challenge of how to judge a work of art, made more difficult by the limited number of general reference books available on Texas art and artists. Resourceful individuals like Bill Cheek effectively created their own reference materials by assembling extensive artist files through hard work requiring research in libraries and historical societies, and by visiting museums all over the state.

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in the mid-1990s george palmer first became interested in texas art. he was already an experienced collector, beginning with comic books as a kid. As an adult his collecting interests turned to Bakelite radios, and then to antiques from the American Arts and Crafts Movement. His interest in antiques from this era, spanning roughly 19001920, led to his initial exposure to Texas art. As a native Texan, the thought of collecting Texas art as a complement to his mission-style antiques just made sense. On a tip, George visited David Dike Fine Art for the first time in 1995. He really liked what he saw there and walked out with his first acquisition – a painting by Olin Travis. His Texas art collecting journey had begun.

Hungry to learn more about Texas art, George read anything he could find on the subject. He visited the Dallas Museum of Art and made multiple visits to David Dike’s gallery. It soon became apparent there wasn’t much Texas art to see, nor were there many reference books available. Through networking, he learned there was great art, but much of it was held in private collections. Frustrated by his inability to see Texas art in the public sphere, George reasoned there had to be a way to learn more.

The genesis of a Texas art collecting club emerged from this experience. George discussed the idea of forming a club with David Dike, Bill Cheek, Russell Tether, and a few others. With their encouragement, he decided to move forward with this idea. David Dike graciously shared contact information for individuals he felt might be interested in such Ace Cook and George Palmer, 2008. Ace put together his Hockshop Collection over a 30 year period and hosted TACO at The Bull Ring in Fort Worth. He was an early mentor to George.

an endeavor. In January of 1996 George wrote and mailed a letter to about twenty people in which he formally proposed forming a ‘Texas Art Collectors Club.’ Here are excerpts from that first letter: The primary purpose of this club would be to increase our knowledge of the artwork done by Texas artists.

The focus of this club will be on artwork done prior to 1960. As I have discovered, there is not a lot of information readily available on Texas artists. Sharing our knowledge, hopefully, will provide all of us with some valuable and interesting information that would be difficult or impossible to obtain elsewhere.

Please come with any ideas you may have on how we could make this club a worthwhile and entertaining organization… Topics of discussion could include getting desirable speakers for future meetings and

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other activities such as visits to museums…

As an extra feature of this initial meeting , I would like to request that everyone bring one painting , lithograph, or other artwork from their collection to show… Please R .S.V.P. to Pam at the David Dike Gallery… Refreshments will be served. that first meeting was held at david dike fine art on february 4th, 1996. there were twelve people in attendance, a good start for such a grass roots effort. In many ways, this initial meeting laid the groundwork for TACO meetings to come. The focus on seeing and learning about Early Texas Art, on collecting, and on having fun has been

TACO Meeting at the Bull Ring, Fort Worth, 2006. left to right: Ken Jackson, Rick Bebermeyer, Ace Cook, Randy Tibbits, and Scott Barker.

fundamental to the TACO experience.

What to call this new ‘Texas Art Collecting Club’? George tried out different possible names, but nothing seemed to work. As his wife Beverly listened to his musings, she noted if the group called itself the Texas Art Collectors Organization then it could go by TACO for short. George immediately agreed to the idea. In his second newsletter he shared the news: We now have a name! Officially we will be known as the “Texas Art Collectors Organization” or “T.A.C.O.” It’s descriptive and shows we don’t take ourselves too seriously.

So we have Beverly Palmer to thank for coining the organization’s name. And while TACO members are serious about Texas art and collecting, we don’t take ourselves too seriously.

In that first year George had an ambitious goal to meet monthly. He and Bill Cheek would get together to discuss meeting ideas. Once a meeting date and location had been arranged, George would write up the details.

Beverly often typed these early TACO newsletters, and George would sometimes draw a map to the collector’s home.

Xerox copies were made, envelopes stuffed, stamped, and mailed.

Bill & Nancy Murchison with Bill Cheek, CASETA, 2011.

Although Bill Cheek never served as President of TACO he has been a steady presence on the board for over 20 years. He has contributed through his deep knowledge of Early Texas Art, his strong relationships with many collectors, researchers, and curators, and his wise counsel on many TACO decisions. He has also been a mentor to many collectors, always willing to share his knowledge.

Notable meetings that first year included visits to the homes of Bill & Mary Cheek, George & Beverly Palmer, Rusty & Cindy Tether, Claude Albritton, as well as to the David Dike Auction Preview for his very first auction, held in November of 1996. TACO meetings in 1997 included visits to see the collections of Ken & Debra Hamlett, Richard & 9

A sampling of publications and exhibitions TACO and its members have generously contributed to through their role in development, writing, loans from their personal collections and financial support.

Nona Barrett, Ray Washburne, plus the Bywaters Special Collections at SMU, the Hall of State in Fair Park, and a special show at the Dallas Museum of Art of selected ‘pieces from the vaults,’ with comments by curator Eleanor Jones Harvey.

Annual dues in 1996 were just $5. This defrayed the cost of postage. In the beginning there was no formal board of directors – just George with help from Bill. Soon an Advisory Council was formed. It included Bill Cheek, Otis Welch, Marc Bateman, and Dave Dempsey. George functioned as the de facto president of TACO. in the late 1990s interest in art from the lone star state really began to pick up. two reference books were published which made a significant impact on collectors: Dictionary of Texas Artists: 1800-19454 and Texas Painters, Sculptors, & Graphic Artists.5 TACO members played a role in the development and writing of each of these publications by providing information to the authors about artists, selected works of art, and related support. As the first general reference books on Texas art in over 60 years, these books were – and continue to be - invaluable resources to TACO members.

Starting about that same time, a series of exhibitions on Early Texas Art were held in various venues in North Texas, and around the state. Here too, TACO played a role. Support was provided either through donations, help in curating the shows, or in the lending of artwork. Especially noteworthy was In Context: Painting in Dallas 1889-1945, which was held at the McKinney Avenue Contemporary (MAC) in the fall of 1999.6 Organized by the MAC along with TACO members Bill Cheek and George Palmer, the exhibition catalogue featured full color images of all the artwork in the show and an essay by Dallas Museum of Art curator Eleanor Jones Harvey. Another exhibition where TACO played a similar role was Celebrating Early Texas Art: Treasures from Dallas-Fort Worth Private Collections 1900-1960.7 This show was held at the Fort Worth Community Arts Center in the spring of 2005 and was jointly planned with two other organizations – the Collectors of Fort Worth Art (COFWA) and the Center for the Advancement and Study of Early Texas Art (CASETA). TACO board member Otis Welch chaired the steering committee for the exhibition, which also included Bill Cheek, Marc Bateman, Dave Dempsey, and George Palmer.

Through 2003 TACO existed as an informal group, with guidance from the aforementioned Advisory Council.

In 2004 the Council decided to incorporate the organization. Marc Bateman spearheaded this effort, with pro bono legal help from Jeff Sone and Michael Kaufman of the offices of Jackson Walker. A board of directors was formed, voting rules

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confirmed, and bylaws established in a charter. The name “Texas Art Collectors Organization” was registered as a trademark in Texas. Shortly thereafter the organization received its 501(c)3 status as a nonprofit entity. The first official TACO Board of Directors meeting was held in November 2004, at the home of Marc and Marcia Bateman. as part of formalizing its affairs, taco adopted a mission statement: The Texas Art Collectors Organization exists to further the understanding and appreciation of Early Texas Art through education, study, debate, and exhibition (See full mission statement on page 17). One of the main ways the board of directors sought to fulfill this mission was through financial support for museums, organizations, and individuals working in the field of Early Texas Art. The earliest such support occurred in 2006 when $500 was donated to the Arlington Museum of Art and $1,000 to the Women’s Museum in Fair Park. Both donations were given in support of exhibitions. Other museums receiving support over the years include the Grace Museum, Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, Tyler Museum of Art, Meadows Museum of Art, Museum of the Big Bend, Amon Carter Museum, Dallas Museum of Art, Harry Ransom Center, and the Latino Cultural Center.

Many of these donations were made to help offset costs associated with exhibition catalogues. This was a conscious choice by TACO boards over the years, with the goal of supporting printing of reference materials for current and future collectors. TACO has been an ongoing supporter of CASETA and the Annual CASETA Symposium on Texas Art. another way in which taco has fulfilled its mission is through presentations made at meetings by curators and researchers. Past speakers read like a “Who’s Who” of Texas Art. A partial list of speakers includes D. Jack Davis, Light & Victoria Cummins, Sue Canterbury, Shirley Reece-Hughes, Francine Carraro, Susie Kalil, Michael Grauer, Ted Pillsbury, and Sam Ratcliffe. Total funds donated directly by TACO to museums or honorariums paid to speakers since 2006 exceeds $105,000. The TACO “seal of approval” has allowed museums to raise many times this amount for TACO sponsored exhibitions.

From the outset, a major goal of the organization was to have fun. A meeting held at the home of a collector has always been what TACO members look forward to with anticipation. Such meetings combine the rare opportunity to see great Texas art, enjoy food and drink, visit with other collectors, and to learn something new. There is nothing 11

quite like the experience of seeing a new collection, or discovering a great painting, print, or sculpture by a Texas artist, especially one you’ve never heard of before. The other wonderful thing about such meetings is the social element. The pleasure in seeing other collectors, sharing news of recent acquisitions, gossiping about upcoming exhibitions, or just catching up on family activities cannot be overstated. Friendships formed at TACO meetings have lasted for years, and in some cases, decades.

There have been over 50 TACO meetings at collectors’ homes since 2007. Some TACO members have hosted meetings multiple times. George & Beverly Palmer have hosted at least five times over the years. Marc & Marcia At the Meadows Museum in, 2008 for a symposium on Jerry Bywaters: Seated is TACO board member, Ellen Niewyk, author of Jerry Bywaters – Lone Star Printmaker, woman assisting in center is unidentified, on right, David Farmer signing poster.

Bateman hosted the annual TACO Holiday Party for several years. Bill & Mary Cheek have also hosted multiple times, including a few memorable meetings where tacos and margaritas were served. Whether hosting once or multiple times, the willingness of collectors to open their homes to share their Texas art has been the heart and soul of the organization. over the years there have been many meetings at dfw area museums, and on rare occasions taco members enjoyed memorable trips to museums outside North Texas. Three trips were made to the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum in Canyon for exhibitions including Picturing Palo Duro Canyon (2006), Urban Texas: Changing Images of an Evolving State (2007), and Texas Impressionism: Branding with Brushstroke and Color 1885-1935 (2012). Another noteworthy trip was made to Austin in 2015 to see the retrospective Frank Reaugh: Landscapes of Texas and the American West at the Harry Ransom Center. These road trips required extensive planning by board members, which resulted in great experiences for TACO members.

In February of 2020 TACO members got a chance to see the outstanding corporate collection of John Carpenter. This turned out to be the last in-person meeting for many months. When the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic became clear the board canceled all planned in-person meetings. A decision was made to offer online meetings with speakers who could present on topics of interest. The first such meeting was held in May 2020. Sue Canterbury, curator

TACO members enjoy a break for lunch at the Jerry Bywaters Symposium held at the Meadows Museum, 2008: above, l-r: Stephen Alton, Judy Youngblood, and unidentified. below, l-r: Dr. Neal Small, Morris Matson, and Dan Earl Duggan.

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at the Dallas Museum of Art, gave an outstanding presentation that was well received by members, and encouraged the board to move forward with scheduling more online talks on Texas art.

Photos from the 2008 Annual TACO Holiday Party, hosted by Marc and Marcia Bateman. These popular annual gatherings were held in January to keep from conflicting with parties in December. In keeping with TACO tradition, a speaker was always present to share insight on an artist or upcoming exhibition. Members always enjoyed the many wonderful food and drink offerings at the Bateman household.

above: David Dike speaks at the TACO Meeting at the home of Marc & Marcia Bateman, 2008. Standing L-R, David Dike, George Palmer, Ace Cook, Jeff Sone, Kevin Vogel, and seated, Joe Oliver. lower right: Marcia Bateman, a gracious and welcoming hostess.

above: Seated on left side of the sofa is Dorothy Garland, TACO board member.

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Throughout the 2020-2021 Covid-19 pandemic, TACO met the challenge by holding our meetings via Zoom. Some of the guest speakers who gave presentations to our members:

To top off the organization’s first 25 years, in November 2021, TACO was recognized

by CASETA with The Bill and Mary Cheek Patron Award. This award is given to organizations in recognition of: “Substantial Resources, Leadership, and Inspiration in Advancing Our Understanding and Appreciation of the Rich Visual Arts Heritage in the State of Texas.” looking back over the past quarter century, what are the keys to success of the Texas Art Collectors Organization? First, TACO is focused on art collecting. For TACO members an important point is that the vast majority of Early Texas Art is both affordable and collectible. Sure, the best works by the most desirable artists are out of reach for all but the

Sue Canterbury

Shirley Reece-Hughes

David Farmer

most well-heeled collectors, but a nice collection can be assembled over time on a relatively modest budget.

Second, TACO has from the start maintained a focus on learning. This goal was established early on with the belief that the more knowledgeable you are, the better decisions you make, the better your collection will be. One way this has been achieved has been through the many speakers mentioned earlier. A second way has been through the monthly TACO newsletters. In 2010 Jeff Sone upgraded the quality and professionalism of these communications through Constant Contact. This new look offered space for a President’s Column.

D. Jack Davis

Cindy Boeke

Randy Tibbits

Over the years, these columns have offered a forum for the TACO president and guest writers to share collecting insights and ideas.

A third key to TACO success has been keeping the organization relatively small. The board’s thinking behind this objective was a practical one. Hosting a TACO meeting of more than about 35 people is not feasible for most collectors.

Finally, having a strong board of directors has been key to TACO’s success.

All nonprofit groups rely on their volunteers to do the work necessary to achieve its goals.

Francine Carraro 14

Pat Bywaters

Michael Grauer

The Texas Art Collectors Organization has been fortunate to have some outstanding board

members over the years, continuing to the current board of directors. The effort required to line up quality meetings and speakers on an ongoing basis, and to put out an informative monthly newsletter, is no small feat. Each president put his stamp on the organization. George founded TACO and has helped keep it going for the past quarter century.

Dave Dempsey brought a sense of organization and professionalism. Marc Bateman was instrumental in getting TACO registered as a nonprofit, developing its mission statement, and organizing the first road trips. Mark Kever renewed the organization’s commitment to learning and had a knack for setting up meetings to see new collections. Jeff Sone served as general counsel, plus promoted exhibitions and museums outside the DFW area. My tenure has included incorporating

TACO Members Patsy Camp and Julie O’Connor, 2019.

on-line presentations. what is the ultimate legacy of the texas art collectors organization? its impact can be seen in three major areas: First, in encouraging and financially supporting exhibitions and related catalogues. That support was important when initially provided, and it will benefit researchers in the future through the tangible records produced. Second, in the quality of the collections of TACO members. All members have been influenced by what they learned at TACO meetings by giving them the opportunity to see first-rate Texas art. Finally, in the relationships developed and friendships formed. Our lives have been enriched by these personal connections. In many ways, these personal bonds are the most compelling legacy of the Texas Art Collectors Organization.

TACO Members enjoying refreshments after a meeting in 2019. beginning front left, circling around the table: Judy Deaton, Harry Jones, Vikki Jones, Nancy Murchison, Bill Murchison, Russ Aikman, Morris Matson, Kathryn Allen, Sue Canterbury, and Shannon Steel.

1

Forrester-O’Brien, Esse, Art and Artists of Texas, 1935, Dallas: Tardy Publishing Company.

2

Fresh Paint, 1985, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX. Stewart, Rick, Lone Star Regionalism: The Dallas Nine and Their Circle, 1985, Dallas Museum of Art, Texas Monthly Press, Austin, TX.

3

Grauer, Michael and Paula Grauer, Dictionary of Texas Artists:1800-1945, 1999, Texas A&M University Press, College Station, TX.

4 5

Powers, John and Deborah Powers, Texas Painters, Sculptors, and Graphic Artists, 2000, Woodmont Books, Austin, TX. In Context: Painting in Dallas 1889-1945, September 18 – October 24, 1999, McKinney Avenue Contemporary, Dallas, TX.

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Celebrating Early Texas Art: Treasures From Dallas-Fort Worth Private Collections 1900-1960, February 14 – March 26, 2005, Fort Worth Community Arts Center, Fort Worth, TX.

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Board of Directors:

TACO Presidents:

Russ Aikman, President

George Palmer (1996-2003)

Jeff Sone, Treasurer

David Dempsey (2003-2007)

Fred Van’t Slot, Communications

Marc Bateman (2008-2011)

Marc Bateman

Mark Kever (2012-2015)

Scott Chase

Jeff Sone (2015-2018)

Dorothy Garland

Russ Aikman (2018-present)

Ellen Niewyk George Palmer Konrad Shields

Emeritus Board: Bill Cheek

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TACO Mission Statement Texas Art Collectors Organization exists to further the understanding and appreciation of Early Texas Art through education, study, debate, and exhibition. Texas Art Collectors Organization expects to accomplish its Mission by: • Utilizing volunteers in the support of educational classes, symposiums, lectures, conferences, and tours of public and private collections; • Encouraging public and private institutions to exhibit collections of Early Texas Art for public enjoyment, scholarly research, and discussion; • Utilizing its financial resources to provide assistance to scholars, lecturers, other visual arts organizations, museums, and other appropriate venues, for presentations and exhibitions for public edification and enjoyment of Early Texas Art.

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Alice & Charlie Adams

At a CASETA Symposium Kevin Vogel gave a talk on memory painters. He used this piece as an example and explained the story behind it, a barber shop quartet serenading the customer while others listened in. Alice perked up and wondered why we didn’t own this genre. That’s all I needed to hear!

After having purchased strictly earlier Texas art for the first five years of our collecting career we wanted to find later works that resonated with us. After studying midcentury modern paintings we found an alternative in David Bates’ art. Oleander and Shell was our first major Bates acquisition. His style is quite distinctive and has “livened up“ our collection.

left:

DAVID BATES (B.1952)

Oleander and Shell, 1997 72 x 60 inches oil on canvas

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above:

CLARA McDONALD WILLIAMSON (1875-1976)

Sweet Adeline, 1955 18 x 24 inches oil on board

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

W. Russ Aikman

I first fell in love with this Adrian Brewer painting in 2001 as part of the exhibition Neighbors: Texas

This “Buck” Winn painting reminded me of a barn on my grandparent’s farm when I first saw it at the

Artists in New Mexico. More a skyscape than a landscape, I was especially taken with the shades of

home of Bill and Mary Cheek. The second time I saw it was at the home of another TACO mem-

blue in the sky. Much later I met the owner and asked if he would sell it. His answer was no. I was

ber. After telling him it was my favorite painting in his collection, he approached me about selling it.

delighted a few years later when he changed his mind.

A rare easel painting from this Dallas Nine artist, it was on loan to the U. S. embassy in Bucharest from ADRIAN BREWER (1891-1956)

In the Navajo Country (New Mexico), 1930 24 x 28 inches oil on canvas

1995-1998.

JAMES “BUCK“ WINN (1905-1979)

Hay Makers, ca.1940 24.5 x 29.5 inches oil on canvas

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Judy & Stephen Alton right:

ALICE REYNOLDS (1910-1984)

Girl Reading a Book, ca.1950 36 x 24 inches oil on canvas

left:

CYNTHIA BRANTS (1924-2006)

Spooked, (l), ca.1975 5 inches; 11 inches with 6" base bronze Trooper’s Horse (r), ca.1975 6 inches; 12 inches with 6" base bronze

A surprisingly intimate genre scene, given its relatively large size, painted by an artist whose works are too seldom seen. Virtually any one of us can relate to this scene of a lovely young woman who is quietly enjoying the simple pleasure of reading in a light-filled room, while seated in a comfortable brightly patterned chair.

A pair of small bronze origami horses by Fort Worth Circle artist Cynthia Brants. The fact that these sculptures were created by an artist from Stephen’s hometown meant that they were destined for our collection. An accomplished horsewoman herself, Brants has captured the spirit of horses painted

by Frederic Remington, which are on view in Fort Worth at the Amon Carter Museum and the Sid Richardson Collection.

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Linda Jo & Scott Barker

A Fort Worth resident for just five years, Jolly exerted significant influence on the city’s emerging

This painting is based on a series of watercolor studies by Smith of ranch properties south of Fort Worth.

artists as a popular painting instructor. He was Bror Utter’s only private teacher. Here, the Forest Park

A rare example of experimentation by a Fort Worth artist with the American Regionalist aesthetic, Smith

merry-go-round, an iconic family attraction, showcased Jolly’s suggestive style of painting.

transformed mostly flat Texas farmland into a rolling, Benton-esque paradise.

WADE LYTTON JOLLY (1909-1976)

SARAH MARGARET SMITH (1913-1999)

Forest Park Merry-Go-Round, ca.1936 13.5 x 16.5 inches pastel on tracing paper

Untitled, (Hill Country South of Fort Worth), 1945 25 x 30 inches oil on canvas

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Marcia & Marc Bateman Many years ago, I saw a photo of the painting in an article in the 1958 Fall Edition of Art in America. The article was written by the owner, Fleur Cowles, a well-known writer, painter, socialite & publisher who died in 2009. In 2010, I tracked it down at her home in London, England. I negotiated with her husband, Tom Meyer. The long-distance visits with Mr. Meyer were very special, learning Fleur had purchased the painting directly from Kelly through her friend Stanley Marcus, also a Kelly collector. On our last visit, Mr. Meyer said, “Ok, I’ll sell it. I think it belongs back in Texas.”

HAROLD O. KELLY (1884-1955)

Penning Goats, ca.1950 14 x 20 inches oil on board

“How often do you catch lighting in a jar?” was A.C. Cook’s response when I asked his opinion about buying the painting for a sum that seemed pretty high at the time. As Ace’s point was indisputable, we bought the painting. Having been acquired from the artist by Dr. Edwin Reeves of Dallas in 1905 and passed down through the family, made it even more special. The Panhandle-Plains Museum collection has a pastel and pencil sketch of the scene.

FRANK REAUGH (1860-1945)

Herd on the Wichita, ca.1900 8.5 x 17 inches oil on canvasboard

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Susan & Bill Bruck

right:

DAWSON DAWSON-WATSON (1864-1939)

Cactus in Bloom, ca.1930 19.5 x 13.5 inches oil on panel

left:

ROBERT WOOD (1889-1979)

Untitled, N.D. 19 x 23.75 inches oil on canvas

The Robert Wood painting was one of the first paintings we bought after we were bitten by the

The Dawson Dawson-Watson is one of our most recent purchases and our second by the artist. The

Texas art collecting bug! Although one might feel this is a bluebonnet painting, we are drawn to

frame is what caught our eye and is so special about this small painting. And of course we love the cactus!

the little scruffy mesquite to the left. Was Wood eyeing the mesquite or the bluebonnets? We also love how the light changes throughout the day on this painting.

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Julie & Terry Brush

When Julie and I began to collect Texas art, we met Ace Cook at The Bull Ring, where he taught us about Texas art. One day he phoned and said, “Terry, bring Julie and your checkbook to The Bull Ring.”

There he told us about the Dwight Holmes painting above, and why he loved this painting. He called it “a killer,” which was his way of describing a top-quality image. It has been in our collection since 2006.

Julie tells me we collect too many landscape paintings. This image at left is full of color, and the subject is a beautiful young woman whom we learned was Eloise Pavey. Travis painted it during his art class at White Rock Lake, which Eloise attended. Interestingly, Eloise signs it in the left-hand corner, and Olin Travis signs the right-hand corner. It is timeless and has been in our collection since 2010. left:

OLIN TRAVIS (1888-1975)

Eloise Pavey Painting at White Rock Lake, 1952 12 x 9 inches oil on board

24

above:

DWIGHT HOLMES (1900-1986)

Under the Cottonwoods, Ft. Davis, Texas, ca.1940 20 x 24 inches oil on panel

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Judy Youngblood & Dan Butler

Gas and Oil #2, 1963, a watercolor by Coreen Spellman, jumped out in previewing works on paper at the David Dike 2007 auction. Fifteen years later, the modernist representation of an iconic midcentury Texas filling station retains its eye appeal.

Spellman enthusiasts may recall a “sister” image

Bror Utter’s Untitled, 1947 is a mixed media piece acquired in 2012 with listed provenance from the

Gas and Oil #1 was also auctioned that day, alas

estate of Kelly Fearing. The piece featuring three abstract figures is an especially strong painting by

to another bidder. Both share the same “slice” of

Utter exploring a subject from this period of his work and enhancing it with rich brilliant blues and

life proportions.

with the sienna he so frequently uses. The verso of the piece has another crossed-out painting.

left:

COREEN MARY SPELLMAN (1905-1978)

Gas and Oil #2, 1963 30.5 x 11 inches watercolor and pencil on paper

above:

BROR UTTER (1913-1993)

Abstract Figures, 1947 10.75 x 11.875 inches pencil, watercolor, and gouache on paper

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

PATSY & ROGER CAMP These two watercolors were painted in the same location one year apart and show Robert Lockard’s transition from Impressionism to Modernism. The paintings were gifts to my parents who were professors at Texas Tech University, as were Lockard and his wife. This, and being from West Texas, sparked my interest in collecting Early Texas Art.

above:

ROBERT LOCKARD (1905-1974)

Caprock Breaks at Crosbyton, Texas, 1938 14 x 20 inches watercolor on paper right:

ROBERT LOCKARD (1905-1974)

Caprock Breaks at Crosbyton, Texas, 1939 14 x 22 inches watercolor on paper

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Cele & John Carpenter Cele and I both grew up on Texas cattle ranches and have wonderful memories of always being outside as kids. Because of our backgrounds, I think we have a real appreciation for and enjoyment of the works of Frank Reaugh and Julian Onderdonk. Both artists, different in style, each uniquely depict the beauty, diversity, and vastness of Texas landscapes.

above:

JULIAN ONDERDONK (1882-1922)

Bluebonnets, Late Afternoon, 1917 40 x 50 inches oil on masonite

right:

FRANK REAUGH (1860-1945)

The Fugitives, 1927 20 x 40 inches oil on canvas

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Karen Casey left:

DAVID McMANAWAY (1927-2010)

Art Frog (Taking a Break), 2000 7 x 4 x 3 inches mixed media right:

NORMA McMANAWAY (B.1927)

Cat Bowl, 1983 4 x 3 x 3 inches clay

My family had a wonderful friendship with David and Norma McManaway. While David is known for his large “Jomo Boards” he also produced delightful small pieces. Art Frog (Taking a Break) is a piece from 2000 when David had a show with Jim Love at Pillsbury Peters Fine Art. My son, Nick, whose middle name is McManaway, picked the piece from that show. An earlier show had taken place in 1971 at the Pollock Galleries at SMU. This show included many artists working in Dallas at that time, including Roger Winter and Jim Love. The Art Frog piece is a good example of the humor and irony that was part of David’s work from the very beginning.

Norma, David’s wife, was an accomplished ceramicist who loved cats. The Cat Bowl is one of her finest. Both pieces make me think of the many visits to David’s studio and the wonderful conversations around his kitchen table.

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Debra Witter & Scott Chase left:

OCTAVIO MEDELLÍN (1907-1999)

Fluid Form, 1948 31 x 15 x 14 inches wood

right:

L.O. GRIFFITH (1875-1956)

Oak Cliff Sunset, ca.1905 12 x 9 inches oil on canvas

Debra: First, we were both drawn by the beauty of the image. We then learned of the special connection to Frank Reaugh and to Oak Cliff, where we have made our home for many years. Griffith took art lessons from Reaugh as a young man and traveled with Reaugh on his trips to West Texas. The image is reported to be a view from the back yard of Reaugh’s studio in Oak Cliff.

Scott: When my wife and I started collecting Early Texas Art, like a lot of new collectors, we were focused on works on paper. Later, we began to collect oils and pastels, and finally, sculpture. To our great delight, Fluid Form was in a David Dike auction and had wonderful provenance. It is now a treasured part of our collection and was in the 2022-23 DMA exhibition, Octavio Medellín: Spirit and Form.

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Mary & Bill Cheek

Lunch Table was shown at The Dallas Women’s club in 1932, but Bywaters soon abandoned this style for his new interest in Regionalism.

Mary: I grew up on a cotton farm in Central Texas and the Thomas Stell just spoke to me. I remembered how important the Weighman was. They listed the pickers and how much each person picked each day and paid them in cash on Saturday. above:

JERRY BYWATERS (1906-1989)

The Cat (Lunch Table), ca.1927 7 x 9 inches lithographic drawing on paper left:

THOMAS STELL, JR. (1898-1981)

Cotton Pickers, ca.1930 12 x 12 inches watercolor on paper

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Elise & Mike Chitty

Ward Lockwood and Loren Mozley were both modernist painters, influenced by their association

Mozley’s Snowy Range is a wonderful southwestern landscape by “a child of the Cubist order,” as Mozley

with the Taos art colony in the 1920s and 30s. Lockwood organized the new UT-Austin Art

described himself. We were young when these paintings were collected some 40 years ago, but they still

Department in 1938 and brought Mozley, Everett Spruce, William Lester, and Constance Forsyth

remain among our favorites. And what could be more appropriate for a Texas lawyer and judge to display

to the university. Lockwood’s Prison Rodeo reflects diverse modernist styles and evokes through

than Prison Rodeo?

action-packed imagery and strong colors a “nothing-to-lose” rodeo competition inspired by the Huntsville State Prison Rodeo.

JOHN WARD LOCKWOOD (1894-1963)

LOREN MOZLEY (1905-1989)

Prison Rodeo, 1948 36 x 48 inches polymer on canvas

Snowy Range, 1948 16 x 20 inches oil on canvas

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Jill & Jim cochran The Dozier was the first work we acquired. We bought it at the David Dike auction in 2011. We were new to Early Texas Art and were attracted to the piece because of the strong colors, playful abstraction, and the fun we had looking at it. The auction is also where we met Mark Kever and were introduced to TACO which led to the many friends we have made over the years.

We were fortunate to acquire Road to Rhome after The Erosion Series exhibit in 2014 at the DMA. This is one of our favorite paintings and we enjoy looking at it every day. We see it not only as an excellent example of Hogue’s style and environmental commentary but also really enjoy the color and landscape perspective. The scene is only about 30 miles northwest of Dallas!

above:

OTIS DOZIER (1904-1987)

Goat in a Flower Garden, 1958 24 x 40 inches oil on canvas right:

ALEXANDRE HOGUE (1898-1994)

Road to Rhome, 1938 30 x 42 inches oil on canvas

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Justin Curtsinger

above:

COREEN MARY SPELLMAN (1905-1978)

Share Cropper, ca.1942 4.875 x 6.75 inches etching left:

CHESTER SNOWDEN (1900-1984)

As a preservation architect I work with buildings that tell our collective story. So naturally when I

Abstract, N.D. 16 x 20 inches oil on board

began collecting four years ago, I was drawn to pieces that reverberate off my memories through the work’s background, subject or colors. Each piece I collect is very personal and offers an intimate glimpse into my own story. The colors and atmosphere in Snowden’s Abstract recall a close friend and mentor, while Spellman’s Share Cropper reminds me of my rural upbringing.

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Gail C. & D. Jack Davis

We like the stylized trees and plant forms in this painting because it shows how Ms. Baltzel, who taught sculpture at TWU, thought sculpturally. The piece presents an unsolved mystery. Ms. Baltzel exhibited extensively including in the 1936 Texas Centennial, the 6th, 9th and 10th Texas Generals and other venues. This is the only piece of her work known to exist. We have searched for 25 years for other work by her to no avail.

We like the way that Spellman framed her picture plane, much like John Marin. The abstract form supports the subject of the painting – mimosa trees in the park. The park setting is enhanced and solidified with additional trees in the background and the three large flowering plants in the foreground. Even though this painting is from 1959, it is very reminiscent of abstract landscapes that Spellman was doing in the early 1930s when she studied with Charles Martin. left:

COREEN MARY SPELLMAN (1905-1978)

Mimosa Trees in the Park, 1959 21.5 x 16 inches watercolor on paper

34

above:

MARJORIE BALTZEL (1891-1979)

Untitled, possibly “Rockport,” ca.1937 14 x 20.5 inches watercolor on paper

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Beth & David Dike In 1991, I organized an exhibition of Fort Worth Circle artists. I visited Cynthia Brants in Granbury to select works for the show. Noticing this painting in her living room I asked if she would sell it. Unfortunately, it was not for sale. I inquired periodically and in 1995 she decided to sell it. I love the rhythm of the paint and the colors. It’s one of my favorites because it reminds me of the time I spent with Cynthia. She was a bright, fun person who loved her craft. left:

CYNTHIA BRANTS (1924-2006)

Sailboat Masts (Maine), ca.1960 28 x 17 inches oil on board

I recall walking into an estate sale in the Rivercrest area of Fort Worth and spotted this little jewel of a Bror Utter in the master bathroom. First of all I love birds and love the fact that this piece is titled Performing Birds and has Utter’s signature fractured style. I purchased the painting and had it cleaned then framed by Douglass Frames. I have enjoyed looking at it for over 25 years.

above:

BROR UTTER (1913-1993)

Performing Birds, ca.1955 17 x 12 inches oil on canvas

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Susan & Rob dillard far right:

JEANETTE MOYER (1917-2013)

Rhapsody, ca.1946 11 x 9 inches oil on board right:

GEORGE GRAMMER (1928-2019)

Blue Toshiko Pot, ca.1960-1975 30 x 24 inches oil on canvas

Even though we have deep ties to West Texas, we were immediately drawn to this abstract/modern painting by East Texas artist and teacher, Viola Jeanette McCreary As new members of TACO, we were drawn to George Grammer’s beautiful blue painting of a ceramic pot

Moyer. We love the intricate geometric-style design and beautiful primary colors burst-

sitting on a fireplace mantle. The pot is the actual work of Grammer’s friend, Toshiko Takaezu, who was

ing with life. On the reverse side of Rhapsody is a Dallas Museum of Fine Arts label for

a renowned ceramicist. We were told this painting had hung in Grammer’s office for many years. George

entry in the Eighth Texas General Exhibition 1946-1947. Though this is a small oil

Grammer was the youngest member of the Fort Worth Circle.

painting, Rhapsody is filled with euphoria and exhilaration.

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Dorothy Garland

Bluebonnets are an undeniable symbol of Texas. Every spring, we would drive into the countryside to see the bluebonnets. Onderdonk is nationally recognized, even beyond being an early Texas artist, and his bluebonnet works are iconic. I wanted one of his paintings so much that I traded three other pieces to acquire it. I treasure my Onderdonk. above:

JULIAN ONDERDONK (1882-1922)

This painting caught my eye because it seemed to be an unusual subject for William Lester. My

Bluebonnets in the Afternoon, N.D. 9 x 12 inches oil on panel

husband Mat and I started collecting Early Texas Art in the late 1990s. It was something to do

left:

together. We were introduced to early Texas artists and really loved their stories. In 2019, Shirley

Two Herons, 1948-1950 20 x 24 inches oil on masonite

Reece-Hughes of the Amon Carter Museum visited me. Her interest fell to this painting. In 2020, I

WILLIAM LESTER (1910-1991)

donated it to the museum so the public can enjoy it forever.

AMON CARTER MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART, FORT WORTH, TEXAS. GIFT OF MAT AND DOROTHY GARLAND.

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Debra & Ken Hamlett The Herman Lungkwitz – Paggi’s Mill, Austin Texas – was painted in 1876. It came by a descendant of the woman who purchased it from gallerist Fred Kline. Then I purchased it from her descendants.

These pieces are so well done and rare. We love the history behind the pieces we collect and the journey in finding them.

I found this one-of-a-kind sterling silver box at an estate sale of a prominent family years ago. The box is by John Szymak, a designer and craftsman in Dallas in the 1950s and 60s. The fired enamel porcelain insert is by DeForrest Judd, dated 1952. He designed and painted the porcelain.

above:

HERMAN LUNGKWITZ (1813-1891)

Paggi’s Mill, Austin, Texas, 1876 10.5 x 14.5 inches oil on board right:

DEFORREST JUDD (1916-1992)

Untitled, 1952 4 x 5.5 x 1.5 inches silver box with fired enamel porcelain insert

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Martha & Kent Hofmeister

A Terrell native, Frank Reaugh was often called the “Dean of Texas Painters,” and is renowned for his portrayal of Texas longhorns and the vast open landscapes of the late 19th century. This pastel on grit paper is from the collection of Dr. Edmund Pillsbury, former director of Fort Worth’s Kimbell Art Museum. We like this painting because it is typical of Reaugh as to subject matter, and, rather untypically, it bears his signature.

Murray Bewley was born in Fort Worth and has been described by some as the leading Texas portrait painter of children in the 20th century. This painting, which we believe to be of his daughter Marian, reflects his studies under Robert Henri and William Merritt Chase and time spent in Paris from 1906-1913. This painting reflects an impressionistic style that we like while still being distinctly different from that of another portrait he painted, titled Marian.

above:

FRANK REAUGH (1860-1945)

Untitled – West Texas, N.D. 4.5 x 9 inches pastel on grit paper left:

MURRAY PERCIVAL BEWLEY (1884-1964)

Untitled, N.D. 20 x 16 inches oil on canvas

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Tiara Jenkins

I acquired this Michael G. Owen watercolor from David Dike Fine Art earlier this year. I had first noticed this work on paper when I was cataloging a folio of Michael Owen’s pencil and charcoal drawings. A figure and an animal sculptor, Owen had created several drawings of animals in different poses. I was particularly attracted to it as it reminded me of a Jersey cow my parents owned when I was growing up.

This watercolor is atypical of Sanders’ impressionist brushwork that is normally quite distinct in her landscape or still life paintings. When I first saw the work on David Dike’s desk, I was surprised to discover she was the artist who had created it. I was drawn to the bold forms that contrast with the light paper.

In her later years, Sanders almost lost her sight but was able to have her vision restored by surgery.

left:

HEDWYN SANDERS (1885-1973)

Abstract, N.D. 10 x 7 inches watercolor on paper

40

above:

MICHAEL G. OWEN (1915-1976)

Jersey Bull, N.D. 9 x 13 inches watercolor on paper

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Vikki & Harry Jones

Vikki: This painting is the most commented on picture in our collection. The TACO meeting at Cherry Springs brings back a lot of memories: lunch itself at Hilltop with Randy Bacon, William Young, and Jon Flaming, motorcycle rides with William, a tour of the small community and its chapel. Jon’s talent is never more evident than in Hilltop Cafe. The good times on the Mason Highway will never be forgotten.

Harry: This picture touches all the bases we like about Kelly Fearing, a surrealist genius.

One can see abstraction, an extraordinary imagination, deftness of touch, and a willabove:

ingness to go where others wouldn’t or couldn’t. Vikki and I feel very fortunate to be its

Hilltop Cafe, N.D. 24 x 28 inches oil on canvas

temporary caretakers.

JON FLAMING (B.1962)

left:

KELLY FEARING (1918-2011)

Saint Francis Receiving the Stigmata, 1953 28 x 15.75 oil on canvas

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Geralyn & Mark Kever

I believe there are three midcentury modernist artists that stand out in quality: Preusser, Fogel and Culwell. Many of his paintings sat around his studio for years until he deemed them finished, this one for 16 years. Culwell was a participant in the 1946 Museum of Modern Art’s Fourteen Americans exhibition.

It probably was very difficult for him to sell his Abstract Expressionist art in Texas during his lifetime. It is highly sought-after now.

above:

BEN CULWELL (1918-1992)

Untitled, 1948-1964 36 x 60 inches oil, glass, sand, and auto paint on board

Born in Mexia, Texas, heavily influenced by Diego Rivera, and eventually spending most of his

left:

career as head of the art department at San Diego State, Jackson produced a number of high

Dinnertime, 1926 18 x 18 inches oil on canvas

quality paintings before he left Texas for California. This painting was most likely influenced by workers on the farms in and around Mexia during his years there.

42

EVERETT GEE JACKSON (1900-1995)

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Pam & Bob Leibrock

Both of these paintings are by my great aunt, Ima Pendergrass (1892-1972), who received her M.A. degree in art from Columbia University in 1934 and was later head of the art department at Hardin College (now Midwestern University) from 1936-1953. She became director of the Midwestern University Museum in 1953 and retired in 1955. Ima is listed in Texas Painters, Sculptors, and Graphic Artists by John and Deborah Powers.

above:

IMA PENDERGRASS (1892-1972)

Untitled landscape, ca.1930-40 15.5 x 19.5 inches mixed media on paper left:

IMA PENDERGRASS (1892-1972)

Church, N.D. 19 x 15 inches mixed media on paper

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Susan & Jim Lockhart

The hand-carved frame of horse, cow, and longhorn profiles appealed to me as much as the image itself when I was fortunate to acquire this piece several years ago. The sheer drama created by the stampede of longhorns being chased by the buckaroos, the swirling dust, and the lightning and thunderstorm looming in the background continues to keep this painting near the top of my list.

This Salinas was the first early Texas painting I acquired and still remains one of my favorites. The front and center blooming opuntia (prickly pear) is the star of the show. The late afternoon shadows created by the sun along with the greens of the cacti and the oranges of the blooms are perfectly portrayed by Salinas. The painting always reminds me of my Texas roots and love for Texas native plants, especially the above:

PORFIRIO SALINAS (1910-1973)

Untitled, ca.1939-1941 30 x 25 inches oil on canvas

44

right:

FRED DARGE (1900-1978)

The Stampede, N.D. 30 x 36 inches oil on canvas

prickly pear.

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Morris Matson

Marjorie Johnson (Lee), Fort Worth Circle Artist, studied and painted in NYC for many years, but

I was in Jefferson, Texas, looking for souvenirs of Caddo Lake, because my then-recently late father

came home to retire. In 1949 Sallie Gillespie of the Fort Worth Art Association, selected her Fish

thought fishing there was heaven. I learned of Don Brown, an artist who specialized in Caddo Lake

and Pitcher, a strong brightly colored still life as one of 32 Johnson paintings from NYC in the annual

scenes. Found his daughter. Left with five early Texas paintings. Later, Heritage Auctions put Ruth up

full-blown one-artist exhibition in Fort Worth. Captivated by the colors and the image, I bought this

for sale and I bought it. Jerry Bywaters (a close friend of Brown’s) called it a Mona Lisa of an African-

strong painting by an excellent female Texas artist with enthusiasm.

American and put it on the cover of Southwest Review. Know my dad is proud for me!

MARJORIE JOHNSON LEE (1911-1997)

DON ADAIR BROWN (1899-1958)

Still Life (Fish and Pitcher), ca.1949 28 x 34 inches oil on board

Ruth (Swamp Girl), 1953 32 x 24 inches oil on canvas

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Janet & Robin McCaffrey

When my wife and I set out to document entrants in the Davis Competition, we knew that Emma Cherry would be an important acquisition and we found this bluebonnet landscape (titled Blue Vista in Houston Heritage Society Museum’s 2004 show Actively Working, Silently Waiting: The Paintings of Emma Richardson Cherry). We love this image because her confident brushstrokes parallel her influence on Early Texas Art and on other women artists of that time.

This painting, exhibited in a 1931 San Antonio Art League show, depicts the importance of women in advancement of Texas art to a degree not fully recognized. McLellan’s treatment of the mother figure and children, dressed in trappings of a more civilized setting, show how she seeks to preserve home in the wilderness. The male figure dutifully tends to wagon and horses. Solitude is amplified by the vast expansive sky…painting a civilized landscape that speaks to place not space. left:

RALPH MCLELLAN (1884-1977)

New Mexico Yesterdays, 1922 49.5 x 40 inches oil on canvas

46

above:

EMMA RICHARDSON CHERRY (1859-1954)

Blue Vista, ca.1930 26 x 36 inches oil on canvas

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Jan & Al McCLendon

This painting had just come into David Dike’s gallery when we purchased it in 2010. We stopped to pick up three prints we’d purchased, so we didn’t consider buying the painting. After a discussion on the way home, we called David and closed the deal. He featured the painting at CASETA the following weekend, and it attracted attention, so we knew our quick decision was the right one. We later learned it won a Purchase Prize at a DMFA exhibition in 1950.

The Umlauf bronze Supplication Abstraction Form 4 was purchased from David Dike in 2017. Jan immediately loved it, and Al agreed to take it home on approval. He quickly grew to love it, and it led to our greater appreciation of three-dimensional art and the addition of sculpture to our collection.

Umlauf did many sculptures based on the theme of supplication over about a 15-year period, but we like above:

right:

CHARLES UMLAUF (1911-1994)

OTIS DOZIER (1904-1987)

Supplication Abstraction Form 4, 1989 13 x 9 x 7.5 inches bronze on granite base

Cock and Fruit (No. 2), ca.1950 24 x 30 inches oil on masonite

our version the best!

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Sharon & Marshall Meece I bought this from Everett Spruce at his home in Rollingwood in the mid ’80s. Paid him $1,000 for this and a larger one. My wife said the larger one was the “angriest” painting she had ever seen. So a very short while later we sold it to gallerist Bonnie Wunderlich for $2,000. Thought I had cut a fat hog.

The Nichols is called Mesa and that pictorial play on words is obvious. What is less obvious is the pear (for Perry) and the bread (for money, as in nickels). below:

PERRY NICHOLS (1911-1992)

Mesa, 1962 17 x 34 inches oil on masonite

above:

EVERETT SPRUCE (1908-2002)

Night Fisherman, Lake Travis, ca.1980 16 x 12 inches acrylic on board

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Vicki & Brian Miller

The Loren Mozley painting was one of the first purchases Vicki and I made when we began collecting Early Texas Art. We were really drawn to Mozley’s style and love the clouds floating in the sky above the trees and brush. I grew up in San Antonio and it reminds me of a warm summer day in the Hill Country.

The Spruce painting is very special to us. We love how the glow of the lantern illuminates the man playing the guitar for his lady. The painting also has a surprise, as it’s a two-sided canvas with a classic Spruce abstract landscape on the reverse.

above left:

EVERETT SPRUCE (1908-2002)

Serenade, ca.1940 28 x 34 inches oil on canvas

above:

LOREN MOZLEY (1905-1989)

Texas Hill Country, N.D. 20 x 24 inches oil on canvas

verso image (at left)

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Nancy & Bill Murchison

The Texas Regionalists did good things with isolated farm houses, not many as arresting as this

A good Bywaters can be hard to find these days, which partly explains our delight at the chance to acquire

image – executed with bold and rapid brushstrokes – of a pre-Dust Bowl dwelling inhabited by

this one from a private collector. No less enticing are the artist’s colors – a desert rainbow fading from

farm folk of a once-familiar type: early to bed, early to rise; independent-minded; never quitting;

peachy-gold, to iron-red, to purple and lavender, merging with a gray but fast-purpling sky. The unadorned

the sort who made rural Texas bloom. The car and the care expended on house and garden suggest

cube of a house sits in mysterious solitude under cigar-shaped clouds. Nowhere but Texas.

hard work pays off.

OTIS DOZIER (1904-1987)

Cabin and Well, 1932 12 x 16 inches oil on canvas

50

JERRY BYWATERS (1906-1989

House in Terlingua, ca.1938 10.5 x 13 inches pastel on paper

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Ellen & donald Niewyk Gargantua was the first lithograph Bywaters recorded in his print notebook, which was the basis for my book Jerry Bywaters – Lone Star Printmaker. Little did I know when Bywaters gave me the print in 1987 that almost 20 years later I would be writing a book documenting Bywaters’ printmaking career. The “Lomax House” still stands in Denton.

Bywaters’ art history class The Arts of North America introduced me to the beauty of Santa Fe and Taos. E. G. Eisenlohr’s lithograph, The “Loretto” – Santa Fe, captures the essence of the region’s architecture and history.

above:

JERRY BYWATERS (1906-1989)

Gargantua, ed. 44/50, 1935 inscribed “For Ellen Dec 29, 87 / With Thanks” 12.125 x 16.5625 inches lithograph on paper right:

EDWARD G. EISENLOHR (1872-1961)

The “Loretto” Santa Fe, ed. 31/50, N.D. 4.25 x 8 inches lithograph on paper

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Julie & Ryan O’Connor Thistles was our first abstract piece. Our collection focuses on Texas modernism and abstraction.

We appreciate the contrast of the harshness of the black thistles against the subtle beauty of the pink tones. This piece marks the beginning of our love for collecting Texas midcentury art.

William Lester is our favorite artist. We like the bold colors in the piece, and it complements our collection of Navajo blankets. This piece hangs in the center of our living room. We were able to connect with Paul Lester, the artist’s son, who provided us a photograph of the painting hanging in his living room when he was a child.

above:

OTIS DOZIER (1904-1987)

Thistles, 1960 24 x 36 inches oil on board right:

WILLIAM LESTER (1910-1991)

Primitive Fantasy, 1955 36 x 44 inches oil on board

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Beverly & George Palmer I acquired this moving painting from one of my early collecting mentors, A.C. Cook. It depicts a forlorn Black sharecropper who lost her son during WWll, evidenced by the gold star banner in the window. It is notable that a white Texas artist chose to recognize this Black family’s sacrifice by including this painting in his one-man show at the DMFA in 1945. At that time people of color were only allowed into the museum one day each month.

When I first began collecting Early Texas Art in 1995, I was primarily interested in Regionalist and Impressionist art. I had no interest in Modernist art. That changed gradually over the years.

This Seymour Fogel painting is now one of my favorites. It was an award winner in the 1954 Texas Painting and Sculpture Exhibition and was featured in a book of the best U. S. art at the midcentury.

left:

SEYMOUR FOGEL (1911-1984)

Icarian Flight, 1952 48 x 72 inches oil on board

above:

REID CROWELL (1911-1991)

East Texas Gold Star Mother, 1944 30 x 24 inches oil on canvas

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Nancy & Ted Paup

Nancy and I fell in love at first sight with this beautiful and large painting by Porfirio Salinas. It was at a friend’s house and we literally bought it off the wall and took it home. Also, what made it attractive was its provenance, being commissioned by Texas Governor Allan Shivers (1949-1957), and having been hung in his office. Makes us think of a beautiful Texas spring morning! above:

PORFIRIO SALINAS (1910-1973)

Several years ago, Nancy and I were made aware of a large Julian Onderdonk owned by a lady in

Spring Wildflowers by the Creek, ca.1940s 30 x 40 inches oil on canvas

Providence, Rhode Island. As Early Texas Art can become, I was ready for an adventure. I flew to Boston and drove to Providence to meet with the owner. It was a beautiful painting, so I made

left:

arrangements to purchase the piece and send it home. Great memories, and it felt good to bring a

Sun Lit Birches, 1911 25 x 30 inches oil on canvas

Julian Onderdonk back to Texas!

54

JULIAN ONDERDONK (1882-1922)

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Karen & Sam Pemberton This painting is one of Karen’s favorites. It features a Texas artist and her preferred western subject matter. She is drawn to the variations of purple and blue and the many layers from front to back.

The dramatic weathered single pine tree in the foreground and the cliff in the right middle draw your eye into the painting and back through the many layers leading into the extreme distance.

Sam’s favorite. This exhibition-quality painting hangs in his office. This painting grew on him for many years until we finally had to purchase it. Classic Dawson-Watson Impressionism and palette.

During the Covid lock-down, Sam enjoyed many months of excitement uncovering the long-lost name, provenance, history, and exhibition record of this painting. His research is on the CASETA website under the Research/History & Reference tabs.

above:

FRED DARGE (1900-1978)

Early Morning (On the trail to Hopi Point, Grand Canyon, National Park, Arizona), N.D. 12 x 16 inches oil on canvasboard right:

DAWSON DAWSON-WATSON (1864-1939)

Sunshine Follows Rain, 1927 30 x 40 inches oil on canvas

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Becky & Ken Phillips In 1992, early in our years of collecting Texas art, we had the opportunity to go to the Otis Dozier estate sale. Talk about an incredible opportunity to see the Dozier’s ’50s modern home in Lakewood, left “as is.” Furniture, paintings, books – their studio and creative presence – it was a treasure trove in a fabulous space. We now kick ourselves for only buying one woodblock print and several books from their library. If we only knew then what we know now. Probably the sentiment of many collectors!

The two paintings we selected are both by Texas university professors. Ward Lockwood, a native of Atchison, Kansas, was the founder of the art department at the University of Texas in Austin. There is nothing timid about his style, the use of color or application – using deliberate, but quick broad strokes. Anna Keener, a native of Dalhart, Texas, first taught at Sul Ross State Teachers College in Alpine, Texas before accepting the position as head of the art department at Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, New Mexico. ENMU is our alma mater which factors into our connection with Keener. This painting is heavily influenced in style to that of her painting instructor, Birger Sandzén. Lockwood and Keener both eventually relocated to northern New Mexico where they continued to teach, paint and create prints.

above:

JOHN WARD LOCKWOOD (1894-1963)

Untitled (Horses), 1957 22-1/4 x 30-3/4 inches conte crayon on paper right:

ANNA E. KEENER (1895-1982)

Truchas, New Mexico, 1951 18 x 24 inches oil on canvasboard

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Pam & Mark Presswood

We have primarily collected the Fort Worth Circle. As a Fort Worth native, the history of the Circle and Modern Impressionist and Abstract art struck a collecting chord with us. This painting was a special find and represents Grammer’s early efforts at abstract art. He graduated from Texas Wesleyan in 1949 and this painting shows the dark cobalt blue that he used exclusively in later works.

We found this Rascoe at the former Kornye West Gallery. One of five Rascoes in our collection, we have attempted to collect one from each decade of his career. The Rascoe Family Trust believes this painting was created during his stint at the Art Institute of Chicago in the 1940s. It is also an unusual subject matter for Rascoe, who spent most of his efforts in landscape.

left:

GEORGE GRAMMER (1928-2019)

Untitled, 1952 19 x 25 inches watercolor on paper

above:

STEPHEN RASCOE (1924-2008)

Untitled, ca.1940s 24 x 18 inches oil on canvas

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Konrad Shields

This painting is the essence of what I like about midcentury art: Both spare and rich at the same time. A bonus is that it is in an artist-made frame, which complements it perfectly. My partner Wes and I spent a wonderful afternoon with Mr. Judd’s widow, who graciously answered our questions with both patience and enthusiasm. It was revealing in that she said his two favorite subjects were Caddo Lake and squash plants. Coincidentally, we had one of each!

I had always admired Dorothy Austin’s work at the Dallas Museum of Art, and dared to dream that one day I might acquire one of her sculptures. My dream became reality when about a year ago I was offered this sculpture created in 1936. It exhibits strength and mass, yet “dances” with refinement. It’s magnetic in that it commands attention and seems to want to be touched and admired. One doesn’t enter the room without noticing it! It’s theater-in-the-round at its finest. left:

DOROTHY AUSTIN (1911-2011)

Wrestlers, 1936 14 x 10 inches bronze

58

above:

DEFORREST JUDD (1916-1992)

Caddo Lake, 1952 30 x 40 inches oil on board

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Patricia & Jeffrey Sone

Ed Bearden’s Mill Log Pond, 1942, and Seymour Fogel’s 1945 Untitled (Family Scene) are on adjacent

above:

walls in our living room, at right angles. The paintings are next to one another to demonstrate the

Untitled (Family Scene), 1945 32 x 46 inches oil on canvas

dramatic turn that took place at the end of World War II, as artists abandoned the social realism and muted tones of pre-war Regionalism for color and abstraction.

SEYMOUR FOGEL (1911-1984)

left:

ED BEARDEN (1919-1980)

Mill Log Pond, 1942 21 x 29 inches watercolor on paper

59

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Shannon Steel

My mother, Sara Shannon Steel (1920-1996), was a member of the Fort Worth Circle group of

Fort Worth native and Circle member Dickson Reeder along with his wife Flora, were central to their

artists whom she met while a student. Exhibited in the 1944 Fort Worth Local show, where it

group of artists. I must have been very young when I first saw this painting at their home. It was painted

received Honorable Mention. It was also entered in the Texas General in 1945 and 1946. More

with a cold wax medium – not encaustic – which was some mixture of wax and oil paint. It’s always been

recently it was exhibited in the Fort Worth Library Centennial show in 2001 and the Amon Carter

one of my favorite Reeder paintings, and I was fortunate to acquire it a few years ago.

Intimate Modernism show in 2008.

SARA SHANNON STEEL (1920-1996)

Country House, 1944 11.5 x 15.5 inches oil on canvasboard

60

DICKSON REEDER (1912-1970)

Cloistered Bird, 1945 8 x 11 inches domec wax on paper

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Michelle & Russell Tether

William Young was one of the “Texas Four” at David Dike’s back around 2006. Since then, we became good friends, and I have always loved this painting. Michelle does too. It hangs prominently in our home.

Harvey Johnson is an African American “poet” (artist) who studied under and then taught with Dr. John Biggers. I got to know Harvey many years ago and find both his work and the stories they tell absolutely fascinating. So much so that we recorded several of the stories behind Harvey’s paintings. It often takes Harvey several years to complete one, due to the multiple processes he uses.

left:

right:

HARVEY JOHNSON (B.1947)

WILLIAM E. YOUNG (B.1952)

Wash Day Morning Star, 2006-2010 27.75 x 21.875 inches oil and acrylic on canvas

Small Spat Between 2 Lovers, 2009 17.5 x 40 inches acrylic on board

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Melinda Valentine

My first encounter with Frank Reaugh happened by chance during a visit to The University of Texas at Austin for Parent Weekend in 2015 where I attended a tour of the Frank Reaugh: Landscapes of Texas and the American West exhibit at the Harry Ransom Center. The encounter sparked my interest in Early Texas Art. I loved the idea of seeing the view Mr. Reaugh and other artists might have seen out the window of his studio in View from Reaugh Studio and I have spent many hours admiring that view.

Nov. 2 is one of Mr. Reaugh’s early works, which is believed to have been painted before he moved from Terrell to Oak Cliff. This painting became a favorite in my collection after I acquired it, appropriately enough, on November 2, 2019, as a representation of Mr. Reaugh’s early work in pastel.

left:

62

above:

INEZ STAUB ELDER (1894-1991)

FRANK REAUGH (1860-1945)

View from Frank Reaugh Studio, N.D. 11 x 9 inches chalk on paper

Nov. 2, ca.1885-1890 3.5 x 6.5 inches pastel on grit paper

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Jane Vandecar

I found this little scavenger at a Texas art auction. He has just landed on a tasty morsel and is making

left:

sure no competitor is nearby! The dark, shadowy medium adds to the macabre atmosphere. I like

Study of Caracara, 1962 13 x 19.25 inches ink wash on paper

art that tells a story. This painting could be on the cover of a mystery novel.

This painting was at a friend’s home leaning against a wall because he didn’t have a place to hang it.

I said, “Well I do!” and it became mine. These happy birds are enjoying the morning and looking forward to their day. I can hear them chirping. In contrast with the caracara, this painting is very

GIBBS MILLIKEN (B.1935)

above:

WAYNE AMERINE (1928-2008)

Birds, ed. 24/45, 1962 14 x 17 inches lithograph on paper

peaceful. Two different birds, two different stories.

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Cortney & Fred Van’t Slot

above:

Cortney and I both love traveling the desert Southwest, be it Southwest Texas, New Mexico, or anywhere

Spring in West Texas, 1984 30 x 36 inches oil on board

in the Four Corners region. Much of our collection reflects this love of the Southwest, so we look for

OTIS DOZIER (1904-1987)

right:

MARIE HAINES (1881-1979)

Old Church at Ranchos de Taos, 1926 23 x 28 inches oil on board

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paintings of the area done by Texas artists. Cortney is particularly drawn to the Otis Dozier painting. The green of the spring landscape reminds her of the native Texas plants of which she is so fond. One of my favorites is the Marie Haines painting. Its bold brush strokes and atmospheric colors sum up much of the mystery and unique land that is New Mexico.

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Cheryl & Kevin Vogel

Kevin: My father, art dealer Donald Vogel, represented the highly sophisticated memory painters Clara McDonald Williamson and Velox Ward. Memory painters are a class of naïve artists who normally start painting after retirement, often in their 60s. The subjects they paint are usually autobiographical and their often-stated intention is to show the viewer the world they grew up in, as in this compositionally complex Ward painting of humble life depicting the daily ritual of announcing dinner, country style.

Cheryl & Kevin: This 1961 welded steel sculpture of a knight on horseback was in two major San Antonio collections before consignment to a gallery who couldn’t sell it because it was unsigned. Knowing it was an exceptionally fine early work

by Evett, who we represented late in his career when his medium was wood, Cheryl and I had to have it. Signatures aren’t above:

PHILIP JOHN EVETT (1923-2016)

Camelot, 1961 20.75 x 18 x 12.5 inches welded steel

right:

everything: it was reproduced in a McNay monograph on Evett as owned by the museum’s director, John Leeper.

VELOX WARD (1901-1994)

Mama Blows the Horn, 1967 20 x 24 inches oil on wood

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Carolyn Walton

Everett Spruce’s Pedernales Cypress was always one of our favorites. It was a great privilege for it to be selected for the 2020 exhibition Texas Made Modern: The Art of Everett Spruce at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art. The Barney Delabano Sunflowers was the first piece of Early Texas Art that my late husband Dick and I purchased. This was in 1996. After that we were “hooked” and kept adding to our collection.

The painting has hung in our home ever since.

left:

66

above:

BARNEY DELABANO (1926-1997)

EVERETT SPRUCE (1908-2002)

Sunflowers, 1991 27 x 22 inches oil on canvas

Pedernales Cypress, 1977 20 x 24 inches oil and crayon on gessoed masonite

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

George Ward Years ago, I came across a painting by an obscure early Texas artist, Hale W. Bolton, depicting a tree-lined hillside with wildflowers in the foreground and a faintly cloudy blue sky above. With this purchase I began my journey in researching his life and artistic vision. Through subsequent years I collected additional Bolton paintings of woodlands, meadows, ponds, and seascapes which he painted at various times of the day to best capture a colorful sunrise or sunset view. The meadow in this 1917 landscape seems to glow with the setting sun. My collecting expanded to include additional works of other artists such as Paul R. Schumann’s Afternoon on the Beach which shows a beautiful sunlit Galveston beach. By reading art books, auction catalogues, old newspaper files as well as attending CASETA and TACO events, I continue to learn about and appreciate the interesting lives and artistic journeys of these early Texas artists. above:

HALE W. BOLTON (1879-1920)

Texas Sunset, 1917 10 x 14 inches oil on canvas right:

PAUL R. SCHUMANN (1876-1946)

Afternoon on the Beach – Galveston, Texas, N.D. 15.5 x 19.5 inches oil on canvas

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Martha & Allan Woodcook Martha: I chose this David Bates print because it makes me smile. And it is rare.

Allan: I think Gonzalez captures perfectly Old Man Luna’s personality. Be sure and read the inscription on the face of the painting. inscription: After I asked him how did he like my portrait, he said: ”más feo que la chingada –” ( translation: “uglier than f***”) – When I was sketching – this person, he told me “he was waiting until it got cooler and look for his daughter and boyfriend to kill them. He did at 6 pm.”

– Xavier Gonzalez left:

DAVID BATES (B.1952)

Clovis, ed. 10/20, N.D. 4.75 x 2.5 inches dry point etching with chine colle on paper

right:

XAVIER GONZALEZ (1898-1993)

Old Man Luna, ca.1937 19.75 x 14 inches watercolor on paper

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

Micah & Craig Woodcook

Craig: This painting’s provenance (Robert Brousseau Collection, Longview Museum of Art exhibition, featured in the Dictionary of Texas Artists) provided significant comfort to a novice Texas art buyer. Ziegler was a professor of both art and music, and cellist for the Fort Worth

Micah: I was drawn to the strong colors in this highly stylized watercolor portrait.

Symphony Orchestra. As a resident of Fort Worth, a city renowned for its museums, performance halls, and music competitions, this painting hit all the right notes. The style, unlike Ziegler’s more typical impressionistic approach, also caught my eye.

left:

SAMUEL P. ZIEGLER (1882-1967)

Untitled (Orchestra), N.D. 20 x 24 inches oil on canvas

above:

ZANNE HOCHBERG (1931-2001)

Fancy Lady with Green Hat, N.D. 29 x 22 inches watercolor on paper

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

CAROL & STEVE WRIGHT

Our fondest travel memories always include some spectacular sunrises or moonrises. Moonrise in

Donald S. Vogel’s painting makes us wish we could be walking within this lovely scene. One can almost

the Ozarks by Olin Travis is reminiscent of many beautiful evenings we’ve enjoyed during some

feel the warmth of the sunlight through the trees, smell the fragrance of the flowers, and hear the sounds

of our favorite vacations, as well as in our hometown in western Pennsylvania and college years in

of birds in the branches above. We treasure this piece by one of the iconic figures in the Dallas art world

Ohio. The painting evokes feelings of tranquility, peace, and serenity.

and the founder of the beautiful Valley House Gallery.

OLIN TRAVIS (1888-1975)

Moonrise in the Ozarks, N.D. 12 x 16 inches oil on board

70

DONALD S. VOGEL (1917-2004)

Dappled Sunlight, 1985 24 x 30 inches oil on masonite

TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

artist INDEX ARTIST NAME

DATES

PAGE No.

ARTIST NAME

DATES

PAGE No.

ARTIST NAME

DATES

PAGE No.

Amerine, Wayne

63

Griffith, L. O.

Pendergrass, Ima

Haines, Marie

64

Rascoe, Stephen

1892-1972 1924-2008

43

58

1875-1956 1881-1979

29

Austin, Dorothy

1928-2008 1911-2011

Baltzel, Marjorie

1891-1979

34

Hochberg, Zanne

1931-2001 1898-1994

69

Reaugh, Frank

22, 27, 39, 62

32

Reeder, Dickson

1860-1945 1912-1970

1900-1986 1900-1995

24

Reynolds, Alice

42

Salinas, Porfirio

Bates, David

1952

18, 68

Hogue, Alexandre

Bearden, Ed

1919-1980 1884-1964

59

Holmes, Dwight

39

Jackson, Everett Gee

1879-1920 1924-2006

67

Johnson, Harvey

20, 35

Jolly, Wade Lytton

1891-1956 1899-1958

19

Judd, DeForrest

45

Keener, Anna E.

1906-1989 1859-1954

30, 50, 51

Kelly, Harold O.

Bewley, Murray Bolton, Hale Brants, Cynthia Brewer, Adrian Brown, Don Adair Bywaters, Jerry Cherry, Emma Richardson

46

Lee, Marjorie Johnson

1911-1991 1918-1992

53

Lester, William

42

Lockard, Robert

1900-1978 1864-1939

44, 55

Lockwood, Ward

23, 55

Lungkwitz, Herman

1926-1997 1904-1987

66

McLellan, Ralph

32, 47, 50, 52, 64

McManaway, David

1872-1961 1894-1991

51

McManaway, Norma

62

Medellin, Octavio

65

Milliken, Gibbs

Fearing, Kelly

1923-2016 1918-2011

41

Moyer, Jeanette

Flaming, Jon

1962

41

Mozley, Loren

Fogel, Seymour

53, 59

Nichols, Perry

Gonzalez, Xavier

1911-1984 1898-1993

68

Onderdonk, Julian

Grammer, George

1928-2019

36, 57

Owen, Jr., Michael G.

Crowell, Reid Culwell, Ben Darge, Fred Dawson-Watson, Dawson Delabano, Barney Dozier, Otis Eisenlohr, Edward G. Elder, Inez Staub Evett, Philip John

60 20 44, 54

1885-1971 1876-1946

40

1913-1999 1900-1984

21

1905-1978 1908-2002

25, 33, 34

1920-1996 1898-1981

60

1888-1975 1911-1994

24, 70

1913-1993 1917-2004

25, 35

1901-1994 1875-1976

65 19

Wood, Robert

1905-1979 1889-1979

31, 49

Young, William E.

1952

61

48

Ziegler, Samuel P.

1882-1967

69

61

Sanders, Hedwyn

21

Schumann, Paul

1916-1992 1895-1982

38, 58

Smith, Sarah Margaret

56

Snowden, Chester

1884-1955 1911-1997

22

Spellman, Coreen Mary

45

Spruce, Everett

1910-1991 1905-1974

37, 52

Steel, Sara Shannon

26

Stell, Tom

1894-1963 1813-1891

31, 56

Travis, Olin

38

Umlauf, Charles

1884-1977 1927-2010

46

Utter, Bror

28

Vogel, Donald

1927 1907-1999

28

Ward, Velox

29

Williamson, Clara McDonald

1935 1917-2013

63

Winn, James "Buck"

36

1905-1989 1911-1992 1882-1922 1915-1976

27, 37, 54

1947 1909-1976

1910-1984 1910-1973

57

67 33 48, 49, 66 30 47 70 18 23

40

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TEXAS ART COLLECTORS ORGANIZATION • 25th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTORS CATALOGUE

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This catalogue could not have been completed without the help of many TACO members. Those who shared memories of the history of Early Texas Art collecting in the DFW area during the 1980s and 1990s included Scott Barker, Bill Cheek, David Dike, Greg Dow, Morris Matson, and Russell Tether. Past presidents of TACO who shared details of the history Copyright © 2022. TACO Texas Art Collectors Organization 25th Anniversary Collectors Catalogue

of the organization included Marc Bateman, Mark Kever, George Palmer, and Jeff Sone. Proofreading and editing was

ISBN 978-0-9893719-2-6

thanks to Morris Matson and Roger Camp for submitting photographs. We would also like to thank Ken & Becky Phillips

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, without the written permission of the publisher.

for their creativity in the design of this catalogue and overall guidance on this project.

Compiled and Edited: W. Russ Aikman and Fred Van’t Slot Catalogue Art Direction and Design: Becky and Ken Phillips, WinshipPhillips www.winshipphillips.com

72

performed by the current TACO board, with extra help from Scott Chase, Ellen Niewyk, and Konrad Shields. Special

-FVS & WRA