Archives | Winter 2009

Haunting images of the American West -- its people, its grasslands and the cattle who graze there -- echo the imagery of the poem, Grass, in the recently opened exhibit, Between Grass and Sky:Rhythms of a Cowboy Poem. The poetry of Texan Buck Ramsey is well-known to lovers of cowboy poetry and it is eloquently spoken at the exhibit by three cowboy poets in an audiovisual presentation.

Any American who treasures the beauty and traditions of the western ranch lands and the way of life of cowboys and cattlemen will love this show -- a multimedia experience combining the art of poetry with photographs, oil paintings, video, neon sculpture and an eerie installation of suspended buffalo skulls.

The show celebrates the 25th anniversary of the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering, an event sponsored annually by the Western Folk life Center in Elko.

This is the Nevada Museum of Art’s first-ever collaboration with the Elko group. The two museums worked in concert to create complementary exhibits, both of which are underwritten by the E. L. Wiegand Foundation.

The exhibit in Elko is called Between Grass and Sky: Trappings of a Ranch Life. It features authentic cowboy gear, including hand-tooled saddles. Many of the items are available for sale.

Among the most striking works in the NMA exhibit are 40 images of grass -- oil paintings on board by Karen E. Kitchel. These are the first works visitors to the gallery encounter. They stream along the entry corridor, and their definition is enhanced by the yellow light created in the area by transparent yellow window coverings. The effect provides the same enhanced depth-of-field skiers and shooters get when they wear yellow-tinted sunglasses.

Also hanging in the gallery is a lightbox that emulates the famous photo by Richard Prince of a cowboy riding swiftly out of the frame. The untitled work has been deconstructed by Kota Ezawa in the lightbox. Called simply Cowboy, the horse, rider, clouds and grass are depicted in flat cartoonish cutouts.

Another wall is covered with platinum prints by documentary photographer Adam Jahiel. The collection of what he calls “the last authentic American subculture” is part of our permanent collection, a contribution by the E. L. Wiegand Foundation.

Even if you’ve already seen the exhibit once, go back for a second, in-depth look. This is a must-see event in the Hawkins Contemporary Gallery and no museum member should miss the opportunity to enjoy it.