Lot 9
Lockwood "Woody" Dennis (American, 1937-2012). "Mesas" oil on canvas, 2002. Signed at lower left and verso with date. A lovely landscape painting by Lockwood Dennis depicting the red stone mesas of Colorado. The towering plateaus are rendered in Dennis's typical geometric fashion with bold lines and block-like construction accentuated by painterly strokes of aubergine and olive that complement the sandy beige and orange-hued stone. Black pavement flanked by tufts of sage and forest green grass highlight the horizontal plane of the foreground, while tones of coral and apricot fill the sky, suggesting it may be sunrise or sunset; a frequent feature of Dennis's paintings. Aside from the painterly aesthetic this naturally grants a piece, it also places the scene in a liminal space, occupying the transitional time between day and night; perhaps dually reflecting Dennis's own beliefs on the ephemeral nature of painting, once stating: "A principle impetus to paint is to make experiences more lasting, but paintings don't last either..." Size: 14" W x 11" H (35.6 cm x 27.9 cm)
Lockwood "Woody" Dennis was driven to paint throughout his 45-year career and each canvas reveals new aspects about him as a person - his approaches to life, the environment, and art. During the early years, Woody was most influenced by the works of Post-Impressionist pioneers of early Modernism such as Cezanne and Matisse. As he evolved, Woody developed a graphic style that was informed by the style and imagery he created for his woodblock prints.
Dennis was quite eloquent and insightful when asked about his art. The following is an excerpt from the "On Impetus" section of his "Philosophical Musings on Painting": "The impetus to paint is always an experience - a specific place, weather, ordinary things remembered. A celebration of just being here, experiencing the world. The experience itself is somehow lost in the process, and, anyway, its not intended that it should be conveyed. The result is a picture animated by that experience."
Dennis continued, "A painting starts with an exuberance. It's good to be alive. The work is a wonderful place. The feeling seems to cover everything, but it relates especially to past experiences, beginning further back than I can remember. It becomes specific in associations with past experiences: Portland, Eastern Washington, Africa; but not with an exact description. The memory of a precise place and time - a moment of past reality is too terrible to bear, there is such a sense of loss, of things gone forever. So it is a present experience, based on the past. And perhaps the cartoon character adds the levity to remove it from the past, or 'animate' it in the present."
Lockwood Dennis paintings have been collected by the following museums and organizations: Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, Washington; Seattle Art Commission, Seattle, Washington; Hallie Ford Museum of Art, Salem, Oregon; Tacoma Art Museum, Tacoma, Washington; Swedish Medical Center Foundation, Seattle, Washington; Museum of History and Industry, Seattle, Washington; Jefferson Museum of Art and History, Port Townsend, Washington; Whitman College, Walla Walla, Washington; Museum of Northwest Art, La Conner, Washington; Clallam County Historical Society, Port Angeles, Washington; Bainbridge Island Art Museum, Winslow, Washington; US Library of Congress, Washington, DC; US State Department, Washington, DC.
Provenance: Lockwood Dennis Art Estate, Boulder, Colorado, USA
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#188033
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Condition:
- In excellent overall condition. Signed at lower left and verso with date.
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