Long-standing prejudices and stereotypes surrounding the art of the American West have hindered the full understanding and appreciation of painters and sculptors associated with that realm, and Ernest Blumenschein is no exception.
While fans of Western art have long admired the innovation and skill of Blumenschein (1874-1960), one of the six founders in 1915 of the famed Taos Society of Artists, the complete scope of his accomplishments within American art have not been adequately acknowledged.
An ambitious new exhibition, co-curated by Peter Hassrick, director of the Denver Art Museum’s Petrie Institute of Western American Art, sets out to right this art-historical wrong, offering what is billed as the largest and most comprehensive examination ever of Blumenschein’s life and work.
“This book and exhibition provide an unprecedented opportunity to re-evaluate, through the work of one of the region’s most commanding artistic figures, the traditionally academic realm of Western American art,” writes Hassrick and co-curator Elizabeth Cunningham in the introduction to the show’s 400-page catalog.
Blumenschein’s comparatively small output would have numbered a little more than 400 works had it survived, but the artist destroyed many works that he believed did not live up his exacting standards.
Sixty-six of the remaining paintings, sketches and illustrations, including many of the ones he most prized, are included in this show, titled “In Contemporary Rhythm: The Art of Ernest L. Blumenschein.”
The retrospective, which opens Nov. 8 and runs through Feb. 8, 2009, will be one of the Denver Art Museum’s most anticipated offerings of the fall. Here is a look at 10 other notable exhibitions through December:
Through Sept. 20, “Internal Combustion,” Ironton Gallery, 303-297-8626, ironton . William Stockman, one of Denver’s most respected artists, is presenting a series of powerful 6-foot-tall drawings that probe the human condition.
Through Oct. 31, “Clay and Glaze: The Ceramic Art of Nan and Jim McKinnell,” Byers-Evans House Gallery, 303-620-4933 or coloradohist . The six-decade career of these two luminaries in the history of Colorado ceramics is celebrated in this comprehensive retrospective.
Through Nov. 1, “Christo and Jeanne-Claude: Prints and Objects,” Center for Visual Art, 303-294-5207 or . This sweeping look at the two celebrated artists, with more than 130 works dating back to 1962, has not been displayed in the United States in more than 15 years.
Sept. 24-Jan. 4, 2009, “In Plain Sight: Street Works and Performance, 1968-1971,” The Laboratory of Art and Ideas at Belmar, 303-934-1777, belmar . This boundary-bursting, late-1960s movement will be explored via surviving ephemera, such as photographs, costumes, props and video- and audiotapes.
Sept. 25-Oct. 25, Werner Drewes, Emmanuel Gallery, 303-556-8337 or emmanuel . A founding member of the American Abstract Artists, this prominent German immigrant produced more than 750 original prints, mostly woodcuts, before his death in 1985.Sept. 26-Oct. 25, “Attracted to Light,” Steele Gallery, Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design, 303-225-8575 or . Brothers and artistic collaborators Mike and Doug Starn offer up-close looks at moths in this simultaneously off-putting and alluring photographic series.
Oct. 1-Nov. 8, Ann Hamilton, Robischon Gallery, 303-298-7788 robischongallery . This solo exhibition will offer a cross-section of installations, photographs and sculptures by Hamilton, who represented the United States at the 1999 Venice Biennale.
Oct. 4-Jan. 4, 2009, “Walt Kuhn: An Imaginary History of the West,” Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, 719-634-5581 or csfinearts . This 1918-20 suite of 29 romanticized Western scenes — one of the artist’s towering achievements — has not been shown in its entirety since 1999.
Oct. 4-Jan. 11, 2009, “Daniel Richter: A Major Survey,” Denver Art Museum, 720-865-5000 or denverart . The first major American museum exhibition devoted to this influential midcareer German artist, it will include about 25 paintings and a selection of small-format works.
Oct. 7-Aug. 30, 2009, Damien Hirst, Museum of Contemporary Art/Denver, 303-298-7554 or mcadenver . Hirst ranks among the world’s most sensational and controversial artists of the past couple of decades. Four of his recent large-scale works — two from the artist and two from a foundation collection — will be shown.
Kyle MacMillan: 303-954-1675 or kmacmillan@denverpost.com
