MUSEUM PREVIEW
T
his summer, Briscoe Western Art Museum
in San Antonio, Texas, tells the story of
contemporary Western art through the
exploration of the groups, movements and artists
who transformed the subject into what it is
today. Into a New West: Contemporary Art
from the Booth Museum, an exhibition running
through September 1, features around 40 works
of art on loan from the Booth Museum of
Western Art, with a small selection from the
Briscoe’s own collection. Exploring such topics as
environmentalism, gender equality and various
social commentaries, the exhibition demonstrates
a shift from traditional representations of the West
to new ideologies and modes of expression.
“There’s so much to do with contemporary
Western art that hasn’t been done yet,” says
Michael Duchemin, president and CEO of
Briscoe Western Art Museum, and curatorfor the exhibition. He breaks down the core
principles of the show: two pivotal movements
that emerged in the 1960s, the establishment
of Cowboy Artists of America and the Institute
of American Indian Arts. “So when you look
at contemporary Western art, the first message
in the exhibit is that the 1960s were a really
transformative time in American culture and
Western art, and that can be seen in the CAA
and the IAIA which embraced modernism and
abstraction for what were young traditional
Native American artists...The IAIA really
transformed Native American art and in the
process became the vanguard for transforming
Western art.” While CAA was crucial as well,
works from CAA artists are not a part of the
exhibition. Rather, a retrospective for the historic
artist group will be held the summer of 2021.
Powerful works are on view during Into aNew West, from artists like R. Tom Gilleon,
Donna Howell-Sickles, Thom Ross, Anne Coe,
Paul Pletka and Carrie Fell, as well as six
of the original IAIA members: Allan Houser,
Shonto Begay, R.C. Gorman, Fritz Scholder,
Dan Namingha and Kevin Red Star.
In Begay’s Our Promised Road, a family
is seen in a pick-up truck driving off the
Navajo reservation, presumably heading toward
Flagstaff, Arizona, says Duchemin. Four Peaks
can be seen off to one side, and a bumper sticker
on the truck reads “save our peaks.” Duchemin
explains that this piece is a commentary on the
convergence between Native American beliefs
and identity in regard to sacred land and the
broader environmental movement.
“The open space of desert in Arizona is being
consumed by suburbanization,” Duchemin
says of Coe’s Suburban Ranchette: The NewNew Horizons
An upcoming exhibition at Briscoe Western Art Museum explores
the realm of Western art in a contemporary context.Kevin Red Star, Ready for the Two Step (detail), mixed media and acrylic washes
finished in oil, 50 x 62”. Booth Western Art Museum permanent collection,
Cartersville, GA.
Donna Howell-Sickles, Not Without Its Ups and
Downs, mixed media, pastel and charcoal on board,
68½ x 49”. Booth Western Art Museum permanent
collection, Cartersville, GA.