Evangeline J. Montgomery Statement

Evangeline J. Montgomery

Statement

For many years I have explored the role of memory and memorials in fashioning human history and identity in my art. My photographs and present abstracted artistic explorations dramatically portray configurations and coding processes of memory.

They represent memory as a template in which the mind stores cherished and sensitive experiences of people, places and events. My art often contains calligraphic marks, strokes, swirling lines, language overlays of varied materials and colors, shadows and atmospheric conditions, naturalistic formations in nature, such as trees, water and rocks.

My photographs offer glimpses of urban and rural landscapes and lifestyles of people of color today. Each work is titled and hopefully that adds to a greater understanding and discussion of the art between artist and viewer.

artwork: Blue Rhythm, Mixed media print, 30” x 22.5” unframed, 2010

Evangeline J. Montgomery – Bio

Evangeline J. Montgomery

artwork | video | statement | bio

Biography

Evangeline J. Montgomery – Printmaking Legacy Project, Inc.

Evangeline Juliet Montgomery was born on May 2, 1933 in New York City. Her mother was a homemaker and her father, a Baptist minister. She discovered her artistic talents when she received her first oil painting set at the age of fourteen. In 1951, Montgomery earned her high school diploma from Seward Park High School.

From 1951 until 1954, she worked painting faces on dolls and religious statues. In 1955, Montgomery moved to Los Angeles with her husband and worked for Thomas Usher, an African American jewelry designer; while attending Los Angeles City College Evangeline earned an AA degree and she went on earn a BFA from the California College of Arts and Crafts.

Evangeline entered the museum field in 1967 serving as an independent curator to museums, university galleries, community galleries and art centers where she organized over 150 exhibitions. She served as the curator for the Rainbow Sign Gallery in Berkeley, California before becoming an exhibition specialist for the American Association for State and Local History in Nashville, Tennessee and coordinating eight national workshops on “Interpreting the Humanities Through Museum Exhibits”. She also organized national exhibit workshops for the Association of African American Museums. From 1976 until 1979, Montgomery also served as a San Francisco art commissioner.

In 1980, Montgomery moved to Washington, D.C. where she worked as community affairs director for WHMM-TV. In 1983, Montgomery began her career with the United States Department of State as a program development officer for the Arts America Program at the United States Information Agency (USIA), specializing in American exhibitions touring abroad. In this capacity, she developed and implemented successful American fine art programs in the United States and throughout the world.

Ms. Montgomery is an active studio artist working in prints, metals, fiber and photography. Her works are in the Los Angeles Board of Education (Los Angeles, CA), The Oakland Museum (Oakland, CA) and The Museum of the National Center for African American Artists (Boston, MA) collections.

Montgomery has held solo shows in Washington, D.C., Detroit, Philadelphia, Boston and New Orleans. Her group exhibitions include the Washenaw Community College Art Gallery (Ann Arbor, MI), Stella Jones Gallery (New Orleans, LA), National Conference of Artists Gallery (Detroit, MI) and Schomburg Research Center Art Gallery (New York, NY). Montgomery’s solo exhibits include the Brandywine Workshop Printed Image Gallery (Philadelphia, PA), Anderson Gallery (Pontiac, MI), Hampton Institute Museum (Hampton, VA) and DePauw University Art Gallery (Greencastle, IN).

Evangeline J. Montgomery

video | statement | bio

Delilah Pierce

Secondary Market

Delilah Pierce (1904-1992)

Artwork for Sale

Delilah Pierce, Untitled (Sailboats and a Lighthouse), Watercolor on paper 16” x 20 ¾” framed, (price subject to verification), 1951, Spence Collection
Price: Contact Galerie Myrtis - 410-235-3711

Delilah Pierce, Untitled (fishing boat) Watercolor on paper, 16” x 20 ¾” framed, (price subject to verification), 1949, Spence Collection
Price: Contact Galerie Myrtis - 410-235-3711

Delilah Pierce, Vineyard Haven Harbor Massachusetts, Acrylic on Board, 23 ½” x 20” framed, (price subject to verification), 1957, Spence Collection
Price: Contact Galerie Myrtis - 410-235-3711

Delilah Pierce, Untitled (flower pot), Acrylic on Board 24” x 20” framed, (price subject to verification), 1957, Spence Collection
Price: Contact Galerie Myrtis - 410-235-3711

Biography

Born in Washington, D.C., in 1904, Delilah W. Pierce served as an educator, artist and curator. Her artistic abilities were discovered at an early age by a teacher who found it difficult to believe that she was able to draw so well.

Delilah is known for her fluid style, which ranged from figurative to abstraction. Her colorful compositions are inspired by nature, social justice, and her travels to Europe and Africa. Pierce was revered by her peers and according to art critic Judith Means, “The way she perceives the world, with joy and optimism, and the stunning clarity of her finely-developed aesthetic sense are integral not only to her character but also to the vivid visual textures of her work.”

Delilah had numerous solo exhibitions and exhibited in more than 150 group shows. During the course of her professional career, she participated in exhibitions with preeminent African-American artists: Elizabeth Catlett, Margaret Burroughs, Richard Dempsey, David Driskell, William H. Johnson, Lois Mailou Jones, Jacob Lawrence, Hughie Lee Smith, Alma Thomas, James Wells, and Charles White.

Her works were featured at: Barnett/Aden Gallery, Cosmos Club, Corcoran Gallery, Howard University Gallery, Margaret Dickey Gallery, Smithsonian Anacostia Museum, and Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C.; Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, Maryland and Hampton Institute (University), Hampton, Virginia and Kenkeleba Gallery in New York.

In 1988, Delilah served as curator for the exhibition “Inspiration: 1961-1989” which was held at the Smithsonian Anacostia Museum and featured the work of thirty-four African-American artists who were members of the District of Columbia Art Education Association. The exhibition, a survey of the works of its members demonstrated the extraordinary talent and served as stated by Ms. Pierce, “ in documenting the history and the staying power of an organization with more than twenty-five years of community involvement and a rich legacy of service.

She was a member of the Smith-Mason Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. and the Old Sculpin Gallery and Cousen Rose Gallery in Massachusetts.

Her work is in the permanent collections of the Smithsonian Museum of American Art, University of the District of Columbia, Howard University, Evans-Tibbs Collection, Barnett-Aden Collection, Smith-Mason Gallery of Art, Bowie State College.

Pierce attended Miner Normal (Miner Teachers College) and then Howard University where she earned a B.S. degree. She went on to receive a Masters in art and art education from Teachers College-Columbia University in New York City; and received an honorary degree, Doctor of Humane Letters, from the University of the District of Columbia, Washington, D.C. Pierce received an Agnes-Meyer Fellowship to study abroad in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Her educational study includes travel to London, Paris, Holland, Rome, Greece, Lebanon, the Holy Land, the River Jordan, Cairo, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Ghana and Dakar.

Delilah Pierce-Biography

Delilah W. Pierce (1904-1992)

Biography

view exhibition | watch panel discussion

She was a member of the Smith-Mason Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. and the Old Sculpin Gallery and Cousen Rose Gallery in Massachusetts.

Lynda Smith-Bugge Video

Lynda Smith-Bugge

artwork | video | statement | resume

Lynda Smith Bugge: Ancient Rhythms Artist Talk

Linda Smith-Bugge: Art Expo, Fort Washington, MD

Artist Talk: Ancient Rhythms: The Grandeur and Intimacy of Nature

Elizabeth Catlett – Video

Elizabeth Catlett (1915-2012)

artwork | biography | resale art work

Elizabeth Catlett: Our Common Bond Artists Talk

Elizabeth Catlett: Sculpting the Truth video on DVD and VHS Tape

Elizabeth Catlett : Legends at Howard University

Elizabeth Catlett : Struggling to Get My MFA from the University of Iowa

Lynda Smith-Bugge-Statement

Lynda Smith-Bugge

artwork | video | statement | resume

Statement

My sculpture transforms nature into works of art. My intention is to draw the viewer into the natural colors, textures, and undulating interiors of the wood.

In public spaces my work brings sacredness and serenity to the space. Viewers are reconnected to nature. Winding shapes of branches rise upward; holes are filled with lathe-turned spheres; tree-wounds reveal imperfections integral to the form; and, balanced connections mindfully bring shapes together.

M. Scott Johnson-Video

M. Scott Johnson

artwork | video | statement | bio | resume

M. Scott Johnson - Home Studio Visit

M. Scott Johnson: Parallel Evolution Pt.1

M. Scott Johnson: Parallel Evolution Pt.2

M. Scott Johnson: Uterine Memories

M. Scott Johnson: The Tao of Physics

M. Scott Johnson: John the Conqueror

M. Scott Johnson: Abstraction Artist's Talk

Michael Gross – Statement

Statement

I have been painting and drawing for most of my life and, in recent years making prints. These creative efforts are a means of grappling with the impulses and struggles that make up the way I see my place in the world. In a work of art I am pleased with, I have succeeded in wresting a sense of order from the chaos of an incomplete and unbalanced piece. I create the chaos and then I resolve it.

Although much of my work is non-objective, in the sense that it is not representational, I also consider myself, in some way, to be a landscape artist. I have been inspired by what I see around me – a small bridge, my garden, a view – and have been moved to put onto canvas or paper a spontaneous expression of that experience in an abstract way.

For a number of years, I have been making intensely colorful, frenetic studies of light and movement that, at first, appear to be monochromatic: red, blue, yellow, brown, gray, white, or black. Up close, however, these paintings are teeming with layers of thrown, dripped, and smeared paint. Even the medium varies: I use acrylic, as well as oil. I also apply these methods to my works on paper.

Recently, I have moved away from the appearance of the monochromatic in the paintings and other work—exposing all of the color, shapes and lines (as well as collage) in the finished piece.

I work rapidly, pacing the studio to look at the painting up close, and then from a distance. I rotate the canvas, so I can see where there is imbalance. I take if off the wall and work on the floor, flinging paint to create lines and movement.

The energy I call up to work in this way is both physical and spiritual. I am wrestling with divergent forces: intensity vs. detachment, emotion vs. reason, light vs. darkness, and color vs. black. Every work is an attempt to capture a moment of equilibrium, a kind of elegant balance in time and space that is recorded permanently in the painting, drawing or print. I settle for a while, and then I seem to need to do it again.

My hope is that viewers will be drawn in, will want to look at the work for a minute or two because in this image I made gives them a vision of the incredible power, ambiguity, intricacy, and beauty of our lives.

Michael Gross was born in 1944 and grew up in Chicago.
He lives in Bethesda, Maryland.