From Watercolor To Woodblock Prints: 11 Works On Paper

Both delicate and enduring, works on paper have an undeniably special quality. They also span a variety of media from gouache and charcoal to lithographs and etchings. These different techniques and styles can be seen in the following eleven works, which represent just a small sample of the art on paper available at the Gallery.

Louie Ewing (1908-1983)-“The Sanstuario [sic] at Chimayo, N.M.”, silkscreen, 12 ¼ x 18 ¾”

Known as the first artist to work creatively with serigraphy (silk screen printing), Louie Ewing first took up printmaking while working as an artist for the WPA. While there, the federal government encouraged them to try silk screening and sent along the materials. Ewing was chosen to master the medium and soon he was teaching it to others, including at the Indian School in Santa Fe. Over his long career, Ewing remained primarily a New Mexico artist, but his work influenced generations of printmakers to come.

Will Shuster (1893-1969) - “Gladiolas”, watercolor on paper, 13 x 10”

Will Shuster was a member of Los Cinco Pintores (The Five Painters), a band of Anglo artists in the early Santa Fe art colony. After suffering tuberculosis from a gas attack in WWI, Shuster migrated to the city to recover in the dry climate. He soon found a circle of artist friends who not only built their adobe homes together, but also established themselves as a creative force in the community and art world at large. Today, Shuster’s eccentric presence is ingrained in Santa Fe, both through his work and the annual burning of Zozobra, a festival he started in his backyard in 1924.

Ward Lockwood (1894-1963) - “Making Adobe Bricks (Untitled)”, #8/12, lithograph, 10 ½  x 14 ¼”

Kansas-born Ward Lockwood studied at the University of Kansas, Pennsylvania Academy of the Arts, and in Paris. He also studied under modernist Andrew Dasburg before moving to Taos in 1926. There he worked with his friends John Marin and fellow Kansan artist Kenneth Adams. His mastery of multiple media and styles led him to be a popular teacher. Lockwood would teach at the University of Texas and University of California at Berkeley before ultimately retiring in Taos.

Gene Kloss (1903-1996) - “To A Wedding In North House” #AP/50, etching, 13 x 16”

Dramatic scenes in black-and-white chiaroscuro are what Gene Kloss is widely recognized for in the art world. Born in the Oakland area, Kloss moved to Taos after her honeymoon there with husband and poet, Phillips Kloss. Her new home is where much of her inspiration was born, leading her to create etchings and other prints based on the local landscape and cultural traditions.

Barbara Latham (1896-1989) - “Indians & Horse”, woodblock print, 6 x 8 ¾”

Barbara Latham is a legend of the Taos art world. One of the early women to migrate there in the 1920s, she was quickly adopted in the inner circles of its burgeoning art colony. In 1928, she married fellow artist, Howard Cook, who influenced her career creatively and logistically as she moved with him for fellowships. Over her travels, she gathered inspiration for lithographs (many used for children’s books), wood cuts, etchings, and more. Today, she’s known as a pioneer for women in the art world with her works widely sought after by museums and private collectors.

Sandor Bernath (1892-1984) - “New Mexico Adobes (Untitled)”, watercolor/paper, 12 ¼ x 16 ½”

Watercolorist Sandor Bernath was born in Hungary and immigrated to the United States as a young man. By the 1920s, he was involved in the New York Watercolor Club, the American Watercolor Society, and had exhibited at the Brooklyn Museum and the Art Institute of Chicago. His works from this time largely feature the Maine coast, such as sailboats and beaches. Later, his interest shifted to the Southwest, where he painted the adobes and vistas of New Mexico. Bernath continued to travel, and according to family accounts, eventually settled in Honduras where he painted until his death in 1984.

Gustave Baumann (1881-1971) - “Pecos Valley” #80/100 (1921), color woodblock, 9 ½ x 11 ¼” 

Gustave Baumann is credited with the revival of color woodblock printmaking in the United States. After immigrating from Germany, he worked at an engraving house while taking night classes at the Art Institute of Chicago. After visiting the Taos art scene in 1918 and deeming it “too crowded and too social”, he boarded a train for Santa Fe. Baumann quickly established himself in the city, where he befriended fellow artists and got involved in community events, like working on the first Zozobra figure. The city would become his new home where he worked and lived the next fifty years.

Doel Reed (1894-1985) - “Santa Barbara Canyon” ed. 30, aquatint on paper, 12 x 18”

Educated in art from a young age, Doel Reed attended classes at the John Heron Art Museum in grade school and later the Art Academy of Cincinnati. After spending WWI stationed in France, Reed returned with a new passion for printmaking–an art form not taught in school at that time. In 1924, he became a professor at Oklahoma State University, gaining national recognition for his novel emphasis on the graphic arts. Upon his retirement in 1959, Reed settled in Talpa, New Mexico where he continued his innovative work until his death in 1985.

Peter Hurd (1904-1984) - “Muddy Road” c. 1930, watercolor, 16 x 29”

A native New Mexican, Peter Hurd was inspired by life in the Southwest. He received his formal education under the legendary painter N.C. Wyeth in Pennsylvania. The pupil became family when he married Wyeth’s eldest daughter, Henriette. They settled in San Patricio, New Mexico, on a 40-acre plot that expanded to become the 2200-acre Sentinel Ranch. Hurd, at home in his surroundings, flourished creatively, developing a freer, looser style that embodied his most famous works.

Eanger Irving Couse (1866-1936) - “Cow In Front of Barn (Untitled)”, watercolor on paper, 6 ½ x 10”

Co-founder and first president of the Taos Society of Artists, E. Irving Couse is known for his idyllic paintings of Native American life and the American Southwest. The Michigan-born artist trained in Paris and had a strong reputation in the East before visiting Taos. Inspired by the distinctly American subject matter, Couse set up a studio with Joseph H. Sharp and formed the six-member society. Couse was one of its most successful members, contributing works for the Santa Fe Railway among other important commissions. Today the studio still stands as the Couse-Sharp Historic Site, preserving the artists’ legacy and work.

George Elbert Burr (1859-1939) - “Del et Imp” (1914), no. 27, etching/hand-colored, 8 x 10 ¾”

Considered among the finest American etchers, George Elbert Burr received under a year of formal training. But it didn’t stop his success. Early on, he produced illustrations for Harper’s Bazaar, Scribner’s Magazine and other publications before embarking on a four-year project illustrating a collection of over a thousand jade antiquities for the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This paid him enough to travel the world, gathering inspiration for later works. Burr later relocated to Denver for his health before permanently settling in Phoenix where he created his oeuvre of Western-inspired pieces that he’s known for today.

These works and many others are currently available at Nedra Matteucci Galleries in Santa Fe, New Mexico. For any questions about the art, please email inquiry@matteucci.com or call (505) 982-4631.