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Southern (ir)Reverence - October 2017
OPENING RECEPTION Friday, October 6th
On view through November 18th.
Read The Washington Post's review here.
Following last year’s successful retrospective at America University’s Museum at the Katzen, Cross MacKenzie Gallery is pleased to present "Southern (ir)Reverence," an exhibition of new paintings by William Dunlap in honor of his recent publication of collected short stories, Short Mean Fiction (Nautilus Press). For over four decades, Dunlap has made his career as an artist and writer, as well as an arts commentator for PBS known for his lively critiques featured on WETA’s ‘Around Town’ program. “Hypothetical realism” is the self-coined term Dunlap uses to characterize his creative style; put plainly, "the places and things [he] paint[s] and describe[s] are not real, but they could be." Dunlap’s grand southern landscapes are cinematic in scope, with lushly saturated colors and expansive vistas, nearly overwhelming the viewer with the scale of their environments. Beguiling and seemingly idyllic, his scenes are often underscored by a touch of the southern gothic, from tombstones to decapitated deer to hunting dogs. Dunlap’s work is redolent of his vast knowledge of art history, while at the same time imbued with the puckish wit that has become something of a signature in his art.
Short Mean Fiction provides a counter-point to his paintings, highlighting the wilder side of Dunlap’s imagination with roughly drawn sketches and rowdy flash fiction stories. The new, beautifully bound boxed-set is published in an edition of 20 and includes 12 numbered prints of the sketches contained in the book, as well as an original inscribed sketch by the artist himself.
Dunlap’s paintings, sculpture and constructions are included in numerous prestigious collections, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, National Gallery of Art, Lauren Rogers Museum, Mobil Corporation, Riggs Bank, IBM Corporation, Federal Express, The Equitable Collection, Rogers Ogden Collection, Arkansas Art Center, the United States State Department, and United States Embassies throughout the world; in addition to his many articles and reviews, which have been featured in countless magazines and newspapers throughout his career. He currently lives the migratory life, splitting his time amongst studios in Mississippi, Florida, and Northern Virginia.