Career George Tooker

1 career

1.1 influences
1.2 artistic career
1.3 artistic style

career
influences

tooker spent late 1940s , 1950s in brooklyn. studied @ art students league of new york under reginald marsh 1943 1945. kenneth hayes miller influenced tooker s work encouraging emphasis on form rather expressive emotion convey painting s meaning. tooker regarded harry sternberg teacher @ league due pointed, challenging questions. upon reading daniel v. thompson s practice of tempera painting, tooker began paint in traditional renaissance painting method. tooker appreciated slow manner of application in particular.

tooker acknowledged need other art support development process. spent of free time reading painting , sculpture books, studying works of antiquity 20th-century art in effort augment artistic vision. particularly interested in classical sculpture, flemish painting , sculpture, italian renaissance painting , sculpture, dutch golden age painting, 17th-century french art, neue sachlichkeit art, , mexican art of 1920s , 1930s. individuals influenced tooker include italian artists paolo uccello , piero della francesca; american artists jared french, edward hopper, paul cadmus, honoré desmond sharrer, , henry koerner.

early in career, tooker s work compared painters such andrew wyeth, edward hopper, , close friends jared french , paul cadmus.

artistic career

his known paintings carry strong social commentary, , characterized public or political pieces. of these include: subway (1950), government bureau (1955-1956), waiting room (1956-1957), lunch (1964), teller (1967), waiting room ii (1982), corporate decision (1983), , terminal (1986). these works particularly influential, because draw universal experiences of modern, urban life. many portray visually literal depictions of social withdrawal , isolation. in many ways, these images reveal negative side of subject matter celebrated in impressionism. modernity s anonymity, mass-production, , fast pace cast under unforgiving, bleak, shadow-less light conveys sense of foreboding , isolation. use of many strong straight lines culminates in oppressively ordered, rectilinear architecture. precise geometric architecture, constructed serve subjects, physically dominates them. tooker saw modern society behaving in same way. modern life becomes prison of soulless ritual devoid of individuality in landscape figures (1966). space compressed, in ward (1970-1971), patients beds lined head-to-foot little walking space, such humanity confined strictly organized grids. these images convey sense of overwhelming silence in lack of control each individual portrayed has on depicted situation. people tooker depicts overcome emotion, never strut, , seldom convey individuality. rather, shuffle along in heavy, uniform clothing , seem act not based on individual will, based on social conditioning. in supermarket (1973), nondescript shoppers surrounded brightly packaged consumables replicated people themselves.

while tooker s public imagery hostile , solemn, private images more intimate , positive. of these include ten images of windows series (1955-1987), doors (1953), guitar (1957), toilette (1962), , mirror series (1962-1971). many of these images juxtapose beauty , ugliness, youth , age, in analysis of female body. space compressed curtain or close-up wall, viewer confronted symbolic identity of protagonist. paper lanterns common motif in tooker s private works, being shared amongst individuals, beacons of soft, warm light present pleasant mood entire scene. see garden party (1952), in summer house (1958), , lanterns (1986). tooker s style of person notably recognizable. resemble skeletons , seem frozen in time , space, though not flat. see divers (1952) or acrobats (1950-1952). people depicted in these images more individualized of public pieces, people in single image depicted variations of same face, similar hair colors , physical features unify , highlight commonalities.

even these private images held social commentary. voices (1963) depicts 2 men, physically identical, separated thin door yet unable communicate. concerned apparent failure understand , communicate within american society. while tooker s figures facial expressions particularly emotional, these images carry heavy emotional tones, through gestures, symbolism, , lighting. see door (1969–70), man in box (1967), , night (1963).

he created religious works. elaborately painted seven-panel piece 7 sacraments located in local church in windsor, vermont. supper (1963) depicts black man praying on loaf of bread in front of 2 white men, recognizable modern update on last supper. girl praying (1977), orant (1977), lovers (1982), , embrace ii (1984) uplifting in portrayal of genuine spiritual connection. juxtaposition of emotions in these 4 images suggest gravity of spirituality , love tooker.

tooker s first exhibition fourteen americans @ museum of modern art in 1946. in 1974, fine arts museums of san francisco organized retrospective called george tooker: paintings, 1947-1973. in 1989, marsh gallery @ university of richmond held exhibition dedicated tooker. addison gallery of american art, national academy museum, pennsylvania academy of fine arts, columbus museum of art, , whitney museum of american art held exhibitions dedicated george tooker. dc moore gallery represents estate.

thomas h. garver, wrote monograph on works of george tooker wrote, these powerful pictures stay in public consciousness. can say, yes, ve been in faceless situation, if s standing in line waiting apply driver s license. works particularly impactful because simple , relate everyday experiences in such way viewer forced become more critically aware of existence.

artistic style

in late 1940s , 1950s, tooker s work appreciated, fell out of spotlight when abstract expressionism gained popularity. several decades, tooker painted little recognition, completing 1 3 paintings each year. in 1980s, rediscovered , celebrated 1 of unique , mysterious american painters of 20th century.

his artistic theory evident in quote: don t think m creator. feel m passive vessel, receptor or translator...the fascinating thing painting discovery. methodically mixed colors hand, using water, egg yolk, , powdered pigment. each painting not painstakingly executed, intellectually considered. tempera quick-drying, tedious method of painting hard change after being applied, , deliberate method suited tooker s disposition , artistic theory. tooker spent 4 6 intensely focused hours each day, 6 days week, 4 months fine-tuning each piece, , deliberately building color , dimension.

while themes of works simple, overall impact of each ambiguous , enigmatic. works reveal eerie situations in mechanical, distancing, , hostile society. these scenes overlaid mythical undertones, poetically capturing sensations of dread , unease. individuals represented generalized , stripped of detail, mask-like faces. blend sexual , racial features, appear more symbols of human beings actual, unique human individuals. appear overwhelmed environment , clothing, unable take control of existence.

themes works focus on include love, death, sex, grief, aging, alienation, , religious faith. devoted numerous paintings single theme, investigating many possible variations express complex ideas conveyed. tooker grew in affluent family, , work reflects both privilege , empathy less.