Spiritual Journeys: The Art of Robert Sudlow
Exhibition Opens Jan. 25 At Ashby-Hodge Gallery of American Art at
Central Methodist College
FAYETTE, Mo. – Spiritual Journeys: The Art of Robert Sudlow, an
exhibition featuring the works of an artist considered one of the most
important painters to emerge from the Midwest, will open Jan. 25 at The
Ashby-Hodge Gallery of American art at Central Methodist College.
With an enthusiastic following of collectors, artists, former students,
and native Kansans, Sudlow is acknowledged as the preeminent landscape
painter of Kansas. He has the distinct honor of being named first artist
in the history of Kansas as the “Governor’s Artist” for the state in
1974. He was also named Kansan of the Year in 1997.
Little is known about Sudlow’s method, iconology, and intent. There are
many misconceptions about his work, the most important being that his
landscapes are simply a description of nature observed.
His paintings are richer and more complex than such superficial
interpretations might suggest. Instead, what Sudlow captures is the
essence of the landscape, that which requires both the mind and the eye
to understand. For he represents not only the land and sky, but also
eastern Kansas light, atmospheric effects, and the transient moment. But
most importantly, he transforms these elements into an evocative
experience, an experience that is remembered and present within the same
moment.
Spiritual Journeys is a retrospective of Sudlow’s career as an artist.
The works represented in this exhibition come from the artist’s personal
collection as well as pieces from the community of Sudlow collectors. A
native of Holton, Kan., Sudlow received a Bachelor of Arts degree from
the University of Kansas, where he worked with Albert Bloch, a member of
Der Blaue Reiter, a group of German Expressionists in Munich, Germany.
In 1946, Sudlow returned to Lawrence as a faculty member at the
University of Kansas in the Art and Design department. He served as
professor of painting until his retirement in June 1988.
The exhibition will run through March 4. Gallery hours will be from 1:30
– 4:30 p.m., Tuesdays through Thursdays and Sundays. A reception will be
held in the gallery from 1:30 – 4:40 p.m., Jan. 25. Also being featured
in the gallery annex during the Sudlow exhibition are works of artist
Birger Sandzen from the gallery’s permanent collection. For more
information or to book tours, contact Dr. Joe Geist at (660) 248-6304
(office) or 248-6324 (gallery) or be e-mail at: jgeist@coin.org.
Although Sudlow has worked and lived elsewhere, he is always drawn back
to the center of the world for him—Kansas. It is a spiritual migration
that calls him home to depict the essence of a certain place at a
particular time. And for those who know and love eastern Kansas, Sudlow
captures a transcendent depiction of where spirit and nature are
mysteriously linked.
Spiritual Journeys: The Art of Robert Sudlow is accompanied by a book of
the same name, with essays by David Cateforis, associate professor,
Department of Art History, University of Kansas, and Preston Fambrough,
professor, Department of English, Baker University. The introduction is
written by Wes Jackson, MacArthur Fellowship recipient and president of
the Land Institute, and the graphic design is provided by Patrick
Dooley, associate professor, Department of Art and Design, University of
Kansas.
The exhibition is organized and toured by ExhibitsUSA. The purpose of
ExhibitsUSA is to create access to an array of arts and humanities
exhibitions, nurture the development and understanding of diverse art
forms and cultures, and encourage the expanding depth and breadth of
cultural life in local communities. ExhibitsUSA is a national division
of Mid-America Arts Alliance, a private, non-profit organization founded
in 1972.
Spiritual Journeys is a program of ExhibitsUSA, which is supported by
the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Houston Endowment Inc., the
Meadows Foundation, the Louis and Elizabeth Flarsheim Charitable
Foundation, Douglas County Bank/Ross and Marianna Beach, Phillips
Petroleum Company, the William Randolph Hearst Foundation, the Don and
Sybil Harrington Foundation, the H&R Block Foundation, the William T.
Kemper Foundation, the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, DST Systems, Inc.,
the Cooper Foundation, Maureen and Robert Decherd, the Helen Jones
Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the state arts
agencies of Arkansas, Kansas, Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and
Texas. The Lila-Wallace Reader’s Digest Fund enabled ExhibitsUSA to
produce many of the high-quality museum exhibitions currently available
at an affordable price. ExhibitsUSA is a national division of
Mid-America Arts Alliance, a private, non-profit organization founded in
1972 and assisted by the NEA, its six partner state art agencies, and
private contributors. Spiritual Journeys: The Art of Robert Sudlow is
made possible through the generous support of Douglas County Bank, Ross
and Marianna Beach, and Hortense Oldfather
