ORANGE, Texas, January 22, 2009 - Dr. William Rudolph, Curator of American Art for the Worcester Art Museum in Massachusetts, will give a special presentation on Texas artist Julian Onderdonk, Friday, February 6 at 6:30 p.m. The free talk is titled
Chase-ing the Landscape: Julian Onderdonk's Ways of Seeing and is in association with the Stark Museum of Art's upcoming exhibition,
Bluebonnets and Beyond: Julian Onderdonk, American Impressionist. Following the talk will be a reception and exhibition preview at the Stark Museum of Art, 712 Green Avenue.
Bluebonnets and Beyond: Julian Onderdonk, American Impressionist is organized by the Dallas Museum of Art, where Rudolph previously served as curator. Sue Harris, Education Coordinator at the Stark Museum of Art, invited the public to the talk, "We are so pleased to have the curator of this exhibition as a speaker. William Rudolph has great insight into how this artist created images of Texas."
Julian Onderdonk (1882-1922) is primarily known for his portrayal of the Texas bluebonnet, though he explored various landscape scenes throughout his career. He traveled to New York to study art with the revered American artist and teacher William Merritt Chase before returning home to Texas to continue painting. In his talk, Dr. Rudolph will explore how Onderdonk applied Chase's principles to a new landscape, his home state of Texas.
Rudolph was recently appointed curator of American art at the Worcester Art Museum. He previously served four years as the Pauline Gill Sullivan associate curator of American art at the Dallas Museum of Art, where he was responsible for numerous installations, exhibitions and acquisitions. Prior to joining the Dallas Museum of Art, he held positions at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. He has given numerous public lectures and authored or co-authored seven publications, including the exhibition catalogue
Julian Onderdonk, American Impressionist, which will be available for purchase in the Museum Store. Dr. Rudolph earned his doctorate in history of art from Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania.
Bluebonnets and Beyond: Julian Onderdonk, American Impressionist explores works of art created by Onderdonk throughout his career. The 94-piece exhibition includes works Onderdonk painted while attending Chase's summer school in Long Island as well as other scenes he experienced during his life in New York and Texas. Also on view will be works by William Merritt Chase, and a portrait of Julian by his father, Robert Jenkins Onderdonk, who also studied under Chase and imparted some of his knowledge to Julian Onderdonk's early childhood studies. The exhibition is on view at the Stark Museum of Art February 10 through May 24, 2009.
Located at 712 Green Avenue in Orange, Texas, the Stark Museum of Art is open to the public at no charge Tuesday through Saturday. Hours are from 10 AM - 5 PM. Group tours are available by appointment. For more information call 409.886.ARTS (2787) or visit www.starkmuseum.org.
Dr. William Rudolph's photo is courtesy of Dallas Museum of Art.
Julian Onderdonk (1882-1922), Untitled (Field of Bluebonnets), n.d.
Oil on canvas, 23 3/8 x 39 3/8 inches. Dallas Museum of Art.
About the Stark Museum of Art
The Stark Museum of Art focuses on the stunning land, the dramatic people and the diverse wildlife of the American West. Paintings, sculpture and prints interpret the West from nineteenth century frontier artists to the twentieth century artistic colonies in New Mexico. Artists include John James Audubon, Frederic Remington, Charles Marion Russell, and many others.
The museum also features a significant collection of American Indian art, including baskets, pottery, clothing, and weavings. Other permanent collections in the museum include the complete porcelain American Bird Series by Dorothy Doughty and the only complete series of
The United States in Crystal, a collection of crystal urns produced by Steuben Glass to depict the 50 states and the Union.
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