“Tom Judd: The Myth of the Frontier”
16 November-19 December 2015
A lifelong interpreter of memory and of the allegory of modern life, Tom Judd has focused the new work in this exhibition on our interpretations and misconceptions about the American West, where he grew up – in Salt Lake City, during the 1950s. The exhibition includes 15 new works including a multi-media installation, paintings and collages related to his interpretation of The Myth of the Frontier. In his own words Tom Judd has addressed his intent in this new work.
The Invented Myth: David Hamilton Murdoch, a British historian, wrote a terrific book, The American West: The Invention of a Myth about the strange obsession Americans have always had with the conquest and settling of the western territories. Ronald Reagan personified this story telling and its perceived consequences…
“If we understand this part of our history, we will better understand how our people see themselves and the hopes they have for America.”
Reagan goes on to present the following western celebrities as the embodiment of our national character – Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane and Annie Oakley–are examples of “ideals of courageous and self-reliant heroes, both men and women, (who) are the stuff of Western lore…(whose) integrity, morality, and democratic values are the resounding themes.”
About Tom Judd:
Raised in Salt Lake City, Utah, Tom Judd now lives and works in Philadelphia. The great-grandchild of the famous Mormon Church president (1918-1945) Heber J. Grant, Judd is not an active church member, but remains deeply informed by the landscape of his youth in Utah and the West. His work is in the collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Philadelphia Academy of Art and in numerous university and private collections. Judd has been the recipient of the Tandem Press Fellowship Residency, the Millay Colony Fellowship, the MacDowell Colony Fellowship and the Pollock Krasner Grant.
(adapted from the gallery’s press materials)
INFORMATION
William Holman Gallery
65 Ludlow Street
New York, New York 10002 USA
(212) 475-1500
Hours:
Tuesday-Saturday, 10:30AM-6PM
Image:
Dale Evans
by Tom Judd
10″x14″
acrylic and collage on paper
2015
Courtesy of the artist and William Holman Gallery, New York