Addison Rowe Gallery presents Andrew Dasburg (1887-1979); Symphonic Drawings. Internationally known and highly respected by his peers, Dasburg became a pioneer in the field of American modernism and was a strong proponent of the ideals of Cezanne and Cubism. This in-depth exhibition focuses on the variety, skill and complexity of his drawings covering his early period from 1912 to his vastly different works from the transitional 1950s to his later minimal style of the 1960s and 1970s. In the words of art historian Van Deren Coke, “It was, however, the drawings done after 1950 that marked Dasburg as a major artist…” (Andrew Dasburg 1887-1979, A Retrospective Exhibition catalogue, pg 3)
Andrew Dasburg was born in Paris France in 1887 and moved to the United States with his widowed mother in 1892 where they settled in New York City. He began his art studies there at a young age and eventually studied at the Art Students League where he met many important artists who influenced his artistic abilities. Among them were Robert Henri, Kenyon Cox and Charles Morgan Russell, all of whom were influential artists of the time. Morgan Russell along with Stanton Macdonald-Wright was the founder of Synchromism, a uniquely abstract painting style during 1912-1921.
Russell arranged an introduction for Dasburg to meet Matisse in his studio, during a trip to Paris in 1909- 10. He also saw the work of Cezanne at the Vollard’s Gallery during this trip. These associations had a profound effect on the artist and helped him develop his unique artistic style that carried throughout his life. He learned about the fluidity of the line, the geometry of angles and the simplicity of shapes.
In 1913 he exhibited three works at the very important Armory Show of 1913. This exhibition is often considered the most important event in the history of American art, and to have work exhibited there gave an artist special status.
Andrew Dasburg visited New Mexico in 1918 at the request of his friend Mabel Dodge who was living in Taos. He soon began dividing his time between New York and Taos until he moved permanently to New Mexico in 1930. His association with New Mexico changed his artistic style and he became a very accomplished landscape painter mostly of New Mexico.
At first glance, one might say drawings are just drawings. The works in this exhibition, however; tell a completely different story. Of the 15 drawings, 2 pastels, 3 lithographs, and 1 oil painting in the exhibition, no two works are alike. Dasburg was a master at the medium of graphite and ink and could give each work a unique personality. Some works are filled with gentile curved lines that represent the openness of the landscape. Others emphasize straight-edged hardline geometric shapes of buildings or mountains. While still, others are fierce and filled with energy. He often uses large angular shapes to create a dramatic landscape, while others have soft curving lines that show a quality of serenity and peaceful open vistas. Dasburg can capture the space of the New Mexico landscape, and the vibrancy of the rugged environment by suggesting shapes of buildings, houses, churches, and mountain vistas. He also would create texture with his pen giving the effect of scribbled lines that look like spiderwebs and bounce around the paper and constantly challenge the viewer. These symphonic drawings give the viewer a chance to reflect on the concepts of positive and negative space, the infinite landscape as seen through a blend of lines and shapes, and create movement in a stagnant image.
