Drawing on a range of artistic influences, especially the enigmatic works of Giorgio de Chirico, Frank Mechau created paintings that offer a fresh take on cowboys, horses and other classic imagery of the American West.
Although the once fast-rising artist never achieved the lasting, widespread fame of some of his peers, Mechau’s impact on Colorado art history – through his output and teaching – cannot be denied.
The Denver Central Library will present the city’s most comprehensive look at the artist and his legacy since the Denver Art Museum’s 1972 retrospective. It should be a highlight of the summer visual-arts season.
The show, titled “Shooting Star: The Artwork of Frank Mechau (1904-1946),” opens Friday and runs through Aug. 30 in the Vida Ellison Gallery on the library’s seventh floor.
It is an appropriate venue. One of the show’s centerpieces, “Horses at Night” (1934), was commissioned for the library by the federal government’s Depression-era Public Works of Art Project. The 12-foot- long painting proved so successful that it sparked a series of government commissions, including two murals for Washington, D.C.’s, post office.
Here is a look at 10 other exhibitions that should prove worth a visit:
Through July 24, “Girls’ Night Out,” Aspen Art Museum: Organized by the Orange County Museum of Art in California, this touring exhibition offers a look at photography and video works by two generations of groundbreaking artists who embrace an evocative and poetic approach to contemporary female identity.
Through Aug. 13, “The Convergence of Art and Science,” Fort Collins Museum of Contemporary Art: Art and science sometimes make for uncomfortable companions. This ambitious exhibition explores what the two disciplines have in common, with an assortment of works by 12 artists who have associations with such fields as astronomy and biological engineering.
Through Aug. 14, “Chihuly at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center,” Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center: This surefire blockbuster contains six of glass virtuoso Dale Chihuly’s large-scale chandeliers and towers, two outdoor installations, 70 drawings and a diverse array of more than 100 other works from early 1970s creations to selections as recent as 2004.
Through Aug. 27, “Full Throttle: Underground Art & the Motorcycle,” Sangre de Cristo Arts Center, Pueblo: This group of six crossover exhibitions explores the booming popularity of underground art, as it moves increasingly into the mainstream. The shows range from tattoo art to pop surrealism, with a particular emphasis on motorcycles and the street culture surrounding them.
June 9-Aug. 28, “Five Presses: Selected Works,” Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities: This exhibition highlights some of the most innovative and compelling original prints created by 75 regional, national and international artists in conjunction with such noted fine-art publishers as White Wings Press in Chicago and Shark’s Ink in Lyons.
June 17-Sept. 25, “Nehuen: Mapuche Power,” Museo de las Américas: One of South America’s most resilient indigenous people, the Mapuche of southern Chile and Argentina withstood the onslaught of the Incas and Spanish, and their influence continues unabated. This show will combine centuries-old artifacts with related contemporary works.
June 30-Aug. 27, “Japanese Design Today,” Metropolitan State College of Denver, Center for Visual Art: More than 100 examples of the best in Japanese design from 1990 to the present will fill out this touring exhibition organized by the Japan Foundation. Showcased will be a range of products, including cameras, toys and furniture.
July 8-Sept. 25, “2005 Biennial Blow Out: Beyond Comfort! Beyond Representation!” Museum of Contemporary Art/Denver: This much-discussed show returns with a twist. Instead of focusing just on Colorado, the museum has broadened the show’s purview to the seven-state Rocky Mountain region.
July 30-Sept. 10, “Stephen Batura: New Paintings,” Robischon Gallery: Things could hardly be going better for Batura, who was named The Post’s artist of the year in 2004. This solo show will set the stage for the unveiling of his much-anticipated mural for the lobby of the new Ellie Caulkins Opera House.
Aug. 5-27, “Canceled Flight: 101 Tried and True Pigeon Killing Methods,” Andenken Gallery: More than a third of the works by 85 of today’s hottest, street-inspired painters, designers and photographers used to illustrate this tongue-in-cheek book are included in a nationally touring exhibition of the same title.
Fine arts critic Kyle MacMillan can be reached at 303-820-1675 or kmacmillan@denverpost.com.
