Stepping Away From the Mirror: Expressive Figurative WorkFrom the Polk Museum of Art permanent Collection, 2003.

For the first time in several years, Polk Museum of Art will exclusively feature works from our Permanent Collection in our two main galleries. This exhibition presents over 50 works centered around artists’ interpretation of the human figure. As the viewer enters the main galleries, the style of the works moves from very naturalistic to increasingly abstract, a decision that was meant to allow the viewer to consider all of the options that artists have and which ones have been chosen for each work. Color, scale, gesture and pose are considerations for the composition, but there are many more that relate to the ultimate purpose of an artwork. For example, a portrait that is rendered as accurately as possible is frequently not the most suitable subject for a particular artwork. Remember as well that any portrait is itself an abstraction to some degree since it is composed of some artistic medium rather than flesh, blood and bone. Since many artists want to address more theoretical and imaginative issues, they must step away from physical reality or its reflection and create unique forms that expand upon our current modes of visualizing the world.

In addition to the artists listed below, the exhibition also includes selections by unidentified artists from our Asian Arts and Pre-Columbian collections.

Artists Featured in this Exhibition:

Downing Barnitz, Thomas François Cartier, Maria Castagliola, Sandro Chia, Edward S. Curtis, Lynn Davison, Leslie Dill, Ummarid “Tony” Eitharong, Domenico Facci, Nancy Graves, John Gurbacs, Victoria Hirt, Marcia Isaacson, Graciela Iturbide, William King, Irving Kriesberg, Jeffrey Kronsnoble, Robert Kushner, Norma Liebman, Patty Margerum, Marino Marini, Chaz Meissner, The Mekons, James Michaels, Alice Neel, Carla Nickerson-Adams, Ed Paschke, Philip Pearlstein, Tall Rickards, Gilberto Ruiz, Miriam Schapiro, Kenny Scharf, Keith Sonnier, Mark Tobey, Rigoberto Torres, Jerry Uelsmann, Bob “Daddy-O” Wade, Vern S. White, Andy Woung, Theo Wujcik, and Yoshitoshi Tsukioka.