Wilson and Cortor at the MFA

On a recent visit to the Museum of Fine Arts here in Boston, I was struck by a wonderful exhibit they are hosting in two adjoining hallway galleries.  The exhibit celebrates the art of John Wilson and Eldzier Cortor.  Neither are artists I had previously heard of and I was charmed by much of the work I saw.  Check it out for yourself:

Wilson's style is more of the kind of stuff that I like to make and look at.  But Cortor's prints were just so amazing. I was nervous that I might get in trouble with the guards because I kept coming so close to the art so that I could see all of the embossed details from printing.

If you'd like to learn more about John Wilson, this is his obituary from the Boston Globe.  There are several lovely photos of him with his work.  You can find Eldzier Cortor's New York Times obituary here.  Personally, I love this quote from him the end of his obituary:

“The idea is to get someone to pause awhile” instead of walking past a picture. Mr. Cortor said in the recent interview. “You try to just get them to stay with that painting for a while, you don’t just burst past it there. And that’s the idea. If you can get someone, to catch their eye a little bit.”

Totally agree.  It's not about like or hate it's about grabbing the viewers attention. 

It may seem macabre to go looking for artists in their obituaries, but often they are a fantastic source of biographical and personal information that goes beyond what art museum placards can offer.  I feel like so much of what an artist creates is based in his or her life.  To know nothing about his or her life is to miss a critical piece of the puzzle.

Agree or disagree?

Thanks for stopping by!