January 2013
Haynes Galleries Extends “Small Things” to February 2 and
Opens “Revisiting The Masters” January 12 from 11 am to 4 pm
NASHVILLE — In a show that gallery owner Gary R. Haynes calls “the best of the best,” Haynes Galleries is pleased to present Revisiting the Masters, a virtual Who's Who of American Realism from the last three centuries. In addition, the gallery will extend Small Things, an extraordinary selection of diminutive works by renowned American Realist painters. The exhibit will run Jan. 12-Feb. 2 at Haynes Galleries, in the historic Music Row Roundabout. An opening reception will take place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Jan. 12. The event is free and open to the public.
Revisiting the Masters is a well-curated selection of works by John Singer Sargent, Winslow Homer, N.C. Wyeth, Andrew Wyeth, Jamie Wyeth, Yousuf Karsh, Frank Duveneck and Ruth Bernhard, among others. This retrospective highlights the mastery that defines each artist — from photography and portraiture to works on paper.
Bernhard’s luminous nude, Golden Light, is so painterly, so soft and gauzy, it’s hard to believe it’s a photograph. In contrast, Karsh’s black-and-white portraits of Picasso, Einstein, Marc Chagall and other luminaries reveal the character of his subjects in stark contrast and deep shadow.
The Wyeths shine in this show. N.C.’s dappled canvases give way to Andrew’s emotionally charged, painstakingly crafted drybrush watercolors and Jamie’s whimsical, energetic drawings and paintings.
Sargent’s drawings are a delight to behold, providing a glimpse into the techniques that make him a true master. On a more contemporary note, Stephen Scott Young’s watercolors hum with life and emotion. Whether he turns his brush to impoverished Bahamian women or the stark façade of a Vermont house in winter, the result is captivating.
Small Things includes more than 160 diminutive works by some 51 artists. Presented salon style, it is a feast for the eyes — a jewel box overflowing with gems.
Among the highlights is Burt Silverman’s White Scarf — in ordinary faces, Silverman reveals the extraordinary. Rising star Jesús Villarreal is at his best with Portrait of a Girl in White, a transcendently powerful painting.
Fool’s Gold, a clever trompe l’oeil by Michael Thiese, is a tiny delight. So, too, is Yin Yong Chun's Bowl of Persimmon. It has all of the elements of a classic still life, but the style is uniquely his own — elegant, restrained, distinctive.
Taken together, Revisiting the Masters and Small Things exemplify the best that Haynes Galleries — and the genre — have to offer. There is no better way to ring in 2013 than by celebrating this rich artistic legacy.