1951-1952
September 16-30 1951
WATERCOLORS & OILS BY 3 SEATTLE ARTISTS – FRED & MAY MARSHALL AND OLIVE BRISTOL
October 2-18
EDWARD B. QUIGLEY – PAINTINGS & WOOD CARVINGS OF HORSES
October 23-November 8
OREGON SOCIETY OF ARTISTS
November 11 – Dec 2
MYRA ALBERT WIGGINS
December 9 -31
YAKIMA VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION PAINTINGS
SILHOUETTES BY KAYE WALKER
January 2-15 1952
37TH ANNUAL EXHIBITION OF NORTHWEST ARTISTS (TRAVELING EXHIBITION)
Jan 20 – Feb 7
WALTER GRAHAM (WENATCHEE)
Feb 10-28
WOMEN PAINTERS OF WASHINGTON
Mar 2 – 20
WATERCOLOR SOCIETY
Mar 16
C.W. ANDERSON LITHOGRAPHS
Mar 23 – April 10
FRITZ WERTZ
Apr 15 – May 1
RUTH ELISE HALVORSEN
May 4 – 22
VASHON ISLAND ARTS LEAGUE
May 25 – June 15
PERCY MANSER
Exhibitions 1951-1952
On September 16 of 1951, the new season opened with an exhibit of watercolors and oils by three Seattle artists, Fred and May Marshall and Olive Bristol.
A Spokane artist, Ed Quigley, opened his exhibition of 30 wood carvings and oil paintings on September 30, 1951. He worked as a commercial artist for years employed by Chicago and New York publishing houses. He retired from this work to devote time to painting and carving western and circus subjects. The exhibit, sponsored by the Yakima Valley Art Association closed on October 18.
On October 21, a collection of paintings by the Oregon Society of Artists, in cooperation with the Yakima Valley Art Association, opened at the Larson Gallery. The society was first organized in 1926 by Mr. William Gray Purcell, Art Editor of the local magazine, Spectator, an architect and conservative artist. In early 1927, an organizational meeting was held at which Purcell was elected President and they titled the organization “The Society of Oregon Artists.” As of this showing in 1951 at the Larson Gallery, the membership of the society was around 500. Forty-six paintings by 31 members were on exhibit.
Edward Burns Quigley
Courtesy of Oregon Cultural Heritage Commission
Myra Albert Wiggins, c. 1900.
Frances Benjamin Johnston Coll.,
Lib. of Congress Prints and
Photo Div., LC-USZC4-9064
On November 11, an exhibit of paintings by former Yakima Valley resident, Myra Albert Wiggins opened. Wiggins was a painter and photographer who “gained recognition when she was named to Alfred Stieglitz’s famed Photo-Secession, an elite group of American and European photographers dedicated to establishing photography as a fine art. Wiggins’s carefully staged photographic vignettes, which resembled Dutch genre paintings, received favorable comment in the photographic press.” This exhibit was extended through December 2.
36 paintings by 17 artists from the Yakima Valley Art Association went on exhibit from December 9 – 31. Artist Polly Speidel had four watercolors on display as part of this exhibit. Also on exhibit in the display cases were silhouettes by Kaye Walker.
Walter Graham, 1952
Courtesy of Yakima Herald-Republic
The year 1952 opened with the 37th annual exhibit of Northwest Artists. This travelling exhibition contained 21 paintings and watercolors by artists living in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. Commenting on the paintings, Guy Brace, curator, said, “I would pick as oustanding an oil by J. Warren Stangle of Seattle, entitled “The Barn.” It is hard to beat and has everything, color, detail and good composition.” This exhibit, sponsored by the Yakima Valley Art Association remained on display until January 15.
On January 20, and exhibit of paintings by Wenatchee artist Walter Graham opened. Graham attended the Chicago Academy of Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Chicago Vogue School. He was a resident of Wenatchee for 50 years. “While a lot of the subject matter is of present day outdoor life, such as pack trains, hunting and fishing,“ Graham said, “a few of my canvasses take us back to the days of the covered wagon and the oxen alongside the dying embers of a camp fire.”
Polly Speidel
Courtesy of Yakima Herald-Republic
Opening February 10, 1952, is a collection of paintings by members of the Women Painters of Washington and sponsored by the Yakima Valley Art Association. Founded in 1930, the Women Painters of Washington is limited to a membership of 80. Among the works is an oil painting by Yakima artist Blanche McLane Cook. The exhibit continued through February 28.
The Watercolor Society, whose members reside in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana, opened an exhibit on March 2. At this time there were 67 members and they had just completed their sixth annual membership exhbiition at the Bon Marche in Seattle.
Sea Biscuit by C.W. Anderson 1952
Larson Gallery Guild Collection
Following the watercolor exhibit was a collection of 50 lithographs of Clarence William Anderson that opened March 16. The sketches were of horses he made while he was in Kentucky. The lithographs were on loan by Arnold Anderson of Yakima, brother of the artist.
From March 23 until April 10 was a one-man show of 120 paintings by Oregon artist Fritz Wertz. This exhibit was sponsored by the Yakima Valley Art Association. Guy Brace, curator, reported that the exhibition has been popular and has been visited by a group of San Francisco artists. “The valley as been well represented, as have the city and valley schools,” he reported.
On April 15, an exhibition of painting by Ruth Elise Halvoren opened under the auspices of teh Yakima Valley Art Association. Halvorsen was the art supervisor of Portland Public Schools. She studied at Pratt Institute and Columbia University, receiving her bachelor and Master of Arts Degrees. The exhibition continued through May 1.
An exhibit of paitnings by members of the Vashon Island Art League opened on May 4 and continued through the 22. “Begun on May, 1951, the Vashon Island Art League has grown in prominence throughout the Northwest, consisting of a small bu vigorous band of artists who favor everything from classicism to the extremes of modernism.” The exhibitin consisted of 28 works in oils, watercolor, pen and ink, and pastel.
On May 25, the Larson Gallery saw the return of Percy Manser, with an exhibition of paintings. His exhibit was under the co-sponsorship of the Yakima Valley Art Association. “The white-haired Oregon painter was the first artist to hold a showing at the Larson Gallery when it opened three years ago. His paintings have always enjoyed great popularity in Yakima, and to local art lovers his exhibition is one of the highlights of the season.”
“Over 19,000 signatures of adults, children and out-of-town visitors were recorded in the attendance book of the Larson Gallery during the 1951-52 seson, according to Guy W. Brace, curator. The season included 13 exhibits of paintings and 12 separate exhibits in the cases at the gallery.”
