The Rising Star of Texas includes a group of paintings, drawings and sculptures from the collection of Robert and Hillary Summers of Austin. The Summers began collecting modernist Texas art over fifteen years ago, when it was an undiscovered area of Texas art history. Their collection of paintings and sculptures include excellent examples of the works of all of the notable early Texas modernists. The purpose of the collection has been consistent since inception: to examine the introduction and incorporation of both European and Modernist artmaking techniques into indigenous Texas art produced between 1935 and 1965.
The art movement, modernism, first originated in Europe sometime between the late eighteenth century and the early twentieth. The first wave of modern art came to our shores in the early 1900's as American artists studying abroad brought these new ideas back home with them. However this initial exposure to modernism did not reach Texas, at that time largely composed of farming and ranching communities, though the oil economy was soon to change things.
Texas artists were influenced by the art movements in Europe, but essentially by Impressionism. With the advent of the great Depression, however, all this changed. "Pretty pictures' no longer seemed relevant and a new generation of American and Texas artists re-discovered European modern art. In the late 1930s the beginnings of modern art could be found in the large Texas cities. In fact, dynamic contemporary art began to be produced in Texas as early as 1936.
One of the most important factors for the development of a strong art scene in Texas was the establishment of local art groups and art leagues, which brought together the first of Texas's professional artists. These early art groups led directly to the formation of the state's leading museums. and the competitions that both the art leagues and museums sponsored directly led to the flowering of contemporary art within the state. In the process a symbiotic relationship between artists and museums was established. The artists competed for the prize money which gave them financial support and the museums were able to acquire the finest contemporary art being made in the state.
Robert and Hillary are native Texans. Robert is a lawyer and writer. He has published essays and articles examining public art in Texas and the foundations of current, contemporary Texas art. Robert is a director of Arthouse (formerly TFAA), the oldest organization in the state dedicated solely to the visual arts. He is also a trustee of the Austin Museum of Art. Robert is involved in statewide arts groups, serving as vice-chairman of CASETA, the Center for the Advancement of the Study of Early Texas Art and chairman of the central Texas Art Collectors Organization. Hillary runs a private internet sales company and manages their collection. After obtaining her art history degree at the University of Texas, Hillary led a state-wide project at the Texas Historical Commission to catalog outdoor public art. She has worked with numerous arts organizations and presently serves on the board of Women and Their Work in Austin.
On Saturday, February 4 at 11 a.m. Robert Summers will give a walking tour of his collection at the museum.
Top left painting, Seymour Fogel, Elemental Force No. 3, 1949, Oil on Board, The Summers Collection.
San Angelo Museum
of Fine Arts
One Love Street
San Angelo, Texas 76903
Fax: (325) 658 - 6800
Phone: (325) 653 -
3333
e-mail:
museum@samfa.org