March 5 – 26, 1980
Richard E. Fuller Gallery, Eugenia Fuller Atwood Library
1980 BEAVER NEWS, MARCH 6
An excerpt from “And Now For Something Different” by Julie Yollin
Glenside, Pa. – Jack Beal, contemporary realist artist will hold an exhibition of lithographs, silkscreen prints and linoleum cuts in the Richard Eugene Fuller gallery of art from March 5 through March 26. Gallery hours are from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily.
Derived from landscape an still-life subject matter, Mr. Beal’s prints assert their uniqueness through the interaction of rich color, highly defined light/dark patterns, and a dramatic spatial structure whereby objects are viewed from above or below rather than straight on, often with a strong diagonal emphasis.
In addition to numerous one-man and group exhibitions in museums and universities throughout the country, Mr. Beal is represented in many private and public collections including the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum, and the Philadelphia Museum of art. In 1977 he executed a major mural project which is permanently installed with the Department of Labor, Washington, D.C.
This exhibition is supported by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Forum Committee and Department of Fine Arts at Beaver College.
Installation view, “Jack Beal: Prints,” c. 1980.
1980 BEAVER NEWS, MARCH 13
“Beal’s Beauty of Reality” by Judy York
Through sponsoring from the National Endowment for the Arts Forum Committee, and the Department of Fine Arts, Beaver College welcomed Jack Beal to the campus on Wednesday, March 5. An artist from New York, Mr. Beal presented a studio discussion and a slide lecture in addition to a festive opening later that evening. Beal’s paintings were recently reviewed in the New York Times (Feb. 10) where his work was categorized by Hilton Kramer as a “New Social Realism.”
The afternoon studio lecture was heavily attended by Beaver students and art department faculty. This discussion was a valuable experience not only to those who attended, but also to Beal himself, as he stated at the close of his talk. He began the discussion by describing his own particular philosophy of art and how he works through his medium to present his convictions. Beal explained that his entire experience in art revolves around his demand for more which requires discipline and concentration. The rationalization of more is the reversal of recent American art trends which involve reduction and abstraction which alienates certain people from the art experience. By painting objects and people which Beal believes to be common to everyone, more people who are not usually exposed to art can understand and relate to his work. Beal also asserts that art should be beautiful, therefore representational instead of abstract, and should reflect a humanism, which is inherent in his conviction that an artist should be responsible to society. Many students present at this discussion questioned many of Beal’s views, and at several points during the talk, the emotional tension became rather taut.
Jack Beal, artist, mid-lecture in the Richard E. Fuller Gallery, Eugenia Fuller Atwood Library, c. 1980.
Even if everyone did not agree with Beal’s opinions on what art ought to be, those who attended the opening certainly were pleased with his work. Most of Beal’s pieces in the show were color lithographs of pond scenes, food, plus two self-portraits, one of which was a woodcut. The pond scenes were natural renderings of plant life in variations of blues and greens.
One particularly prominent piece was a four panel screen covered with a color screenprint of a rowboat in a pond. The rowboat was done in a range of grass surrounded by hues of green and blue representing water and pond life, complete with algae and fish. Beal’s representation of food is executed in such a way to make anyone’s mouth water. Oysters, wine and lemons is a color lithograph of oysters on the half shell, glasses of white wine and wedged lemons pleasingly arranged on a blue-tiled serving tray. Beal’s interest in the natural patterns formed by objects is apparent in his work, and is conveyed by an organic, flowing use of lines.
Whether Jack Beal illustrates his philosophy of art through his work is questionable, but why not find out for yourself. The show is in the Richard Eugene Fuller Art Gallery in the library until March 26. The gallery is open from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. daily. While you are checking out books for term papers, check out Jack Beal at the same time.
