The McMaster Museum of Art

George Wallace: as I was saying

 

Image: Self Portrait with Dark Glasses, 1995, etching; working proofs; gifts of the artist, 1998. photo: J. Petteplace

 

McMaster Museum of Art, McMaster University

June 11 - August 28, 2010

Opening Reception: Friday June 11, 6 – 8 pm

with opening remarks by John Hartman

 

The exhibition commemorates Irish-born Canadian artist George Wallace (1920-2009), who taught at McMaster University for 25 years. Sculpture, drawings and prints from the McMaster Museum and private collections are interwoven with historical and contemporary works by other artists and Wallace’s commentary and thoughts on art and life.

Organized by the McMaster Museum of Art.

 

 

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Although George Wallace retired from teaching at McMaster University in 1985, moving to Victoria BC, his interest in art and cultural life continued unabated. It is evidenced in his erudite and witty correspondence to the Museum on a wide range of subjects. One example is a commentary on the 18th century Picturesque movement and proposing that the spirit—more than the style—survived with the work of Hamilton-born Paul Fournier (b. 1939).

The cues for this memorial exhibition are therefore drawn from Wallace’s own words and thoughts, weaving together his works from the Museum’s collection and a private lender—an arc of 50 years beginning with a formative period in England—with artists and works he named. Among them are examples of the Picturesque by Giovanni Piranesi and J.M.W. Turner with Fournier’s “complement,” and works by Edgar Degas, Ernst Barlach, Käthe Kollwitz and John Hartman.
Wallace’s passion for art extended to his own collecting, and in turn the exhibition includes a selection of historical works that Wallace drew inspiration from and later donated to the Museum; by German artists Ernst Barlach (1870-1938), Alfred Rethel (1816-1859), Max Liebermann (1847-1935), and Ludwig Meidner (1886-1966).

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Related Links:

The Hamilton Spectator, article by Jeff Mahoney, July 2009

Hamilton Arts and Letters, article by Robert Yates and images by Jim Chambers

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List of Works in Exhibition:

 

Works by George Wallace (1920-2009) Collection of McMaster Museum of Art, except where noted   Bombed Hotel in East Bourne, 1950, etching Collection of Dr. Jane Irwin   The Bed-sitter, 1952 , conte and crayon Gift of the artist, 1998   Disused Pit Shaft, 1955, lithograph, ed 2/12 Collection of Dr. Jane Irwin   Untitled abstract, 1960, lithograph Gift of Dr. Paul and Mrs. Helen Walton, 2000   Daedelus, 1962, welded mild steel Purchase through a subscription by the University and Hamilton communities, 1968   The Benevolent Angel, 1963, welded steel, painted Collection of Dr. Jane Irwin   The Death of Judas, 1971, etching Gift of the artist 1992   Ecce Homo, 1972, etching Gift of Mrs. F. Rumsey, 1985   Self Portrait with Dark Glasses, 1995, 8 etchings – working proofs Gift of the artist 1998

Works by other artists (all Collection of McMaster Museum of Art)   Ernst Barlach (German 1870-1938) Der Übergang/The Transition, 1917, cast bronze, ed. 3/3 Levy Bequest Purchase   Edgar Degas (French 1834-1917) After a Self Portrait by Filippino Lippi in the Uffizi, 1858-59, graphite on paper Gift of Herman Levy Esq., 1984   Paul Fournier (Canadian b.1939) Dead Crow #1, 1968, etching Gift of the artist, 1968   John Hartman (Canadian b.1950) Return to Eden (first state),1992, lithograph Gift of the artist, 1993   Käthe Kollwitz (German 1867-1945) Weberzug / Weaver's March, 1897, etching Purchase, 1968   Max Liebermann (German 1847-1935) Weaver, 1883, etching Gift of George Wallace, 1987   Ludwig Meidner (German 1884-1966) Portrait of a Laughing Young Man in a straw hat, 1922, etching Gift of George Wallace, 1999   Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian 1720-1778) Veduta di altri avanzi del predetto Foro di Nerva detti la colonnacce, etching Gift of Herman Levy Esq., 1984