Through October 16, the Hispanic Society Museum & Library traverses the many American artists who were inspired by the historic watercolors painted in and depicting the regions of Spain, Portugal and Latin America. The museum features 70 paintings from their permanent collection, including the works of contemporary artist Timothy J. Clark, in conversation with 45 decorative objects from actual places depicted in the paintings.
Timothy J. Clark, Gryphons, Azores, 2005. Watercolor on paper, 22 x 30 in.
The exhibition came from the research and awareness of Marcus B. Burke, Hispanic Society Museum & Library senior curator, emeritus, upon discovering the sequential influence that artists had on another. He explains, “This exhibition idea resulted from my study of the works of Childe Hassam (1859-1935) in our collection, and the awareness of the role that Hassam’s visit to the 1909 Joaquín Sorolla (1863-1923) exhibition at the Hispanic Society played in his decision to return to Spain in 1910.”
Burke was also familiar with Max Kuehne (1880-1968) and his series of small oil sketches painted in 1920, who was also inspired by the Hispanic Society’s collections. “A decade later, when the traveling exhibition Sorolla and America visited San Diego in 2014, a Southern California artist, Timothy J. Clark, attended the show, over half of which had come from the Hispanic Society’s collections,” Burke says. “Like Hassam and Kuehne before him, Clark was inspired to return to Spain, and subsequently, return to Mexico, with the precedent of Sorolla in mind.”
Childe Hassam (1859-1935), Outer Gate (Puerta del Sol), Toledo, 1910. Watercolor on paper, 97/8 x 67/8 in.
The esteemed curator befriended Clark, got to know more about his large-scale watercolors, and “began to investigate more fully this aspect of our collection of 6,800 drawings and watercolors,” he shares. “To my very pleasant surprise, I found a huge treasure of splendid works of art by now little-known American artists, all of whom had visited Spain with conscious awareness of the Hispanic Society, its Founder, Archer Milton Huntington, and its collections.”
Milan Petrovic (1893-1978), Santo Domingo, Salamanca, 1927. Watercolor on paper, 25 5/8 x 19 11/16 in.
Burke discovered the impressive works of George Wharton Edwards (1859-1950), Florence Vincent Robinson (1874-1937), Orville Houghton Peets (1884-1968), Milan Petrovic (1893-1978) and Ernest Clifford Peixotto (1869-1940), among many others.
As part of the exhibition, Clark will be including 12 of his own watercolor pieces alongside these master artists, as a way to illustrate the modern response to the ongoing Hispanic and Spanish influence. One incredible highlight coming from Clark’s series is Gryphons, Azores—from his trip to Portugal. “I really adore this picture,” Burke remarks. “It is theatrical without being stereotypical and the motif is presented and colored in such away—color is important to [Clark’s] work.”
Orville Houghton Peets (1884-1968), The Jacaranda Tree, ca. 1918-1921. Mixed media (gouache and watercolor) on canvas grain paper, 12½ x 14 3/8 in.
Other works of importance include Hassam’s Outer Gate (Puerta del Sol), Toledo, 1910; Petrovic’s Santo Domingo, Salamanca, 1927; and Peets The Jacaranda Tree, ca. 1918-1921.
The watercolors will also be combined with decorative objects that give context to the works. “[They] speak to the art work and to particular regions that are depicted in the watercolors,” says Burke. “They are in dialogue with each other and give a sense of place.”
Burke hopes that viewers of the American Travelers: A Watercolor Journey Through Spain, Portugal and Mexico see “how rich the world can be when seen through artist’s eyes. It’s through these eyes that gives it energy, life and attraction and, I think, a great deal of meaning.” –
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