Homage to W. Herbert Dunton

Homage to W. Herbert Dunton

The fourth from a series of themed exhibitions drawing on the talent of celebrated Blue Rain Gallery painters

SANTA FE, N.M. [March 3, 2023] – Blue Rain Gallery is pleased to announce an upcoming group exhibition titled?Taos Six Collection: An Homage to W. Herbert Dunton.??This show of new works is scheduled to take place April 28 – May 20, 2023 with an Artist Reception on Friday, April 28th from 5 - 7pm.?

In this special themed exhibition, celebrated Blue Rain Gallery artists paint tribute to a famed founding member of the notable Taos Society of Artists, W. Herbert “Buck” Dunton.??Painters such as Dennis Ziemienski, Jim Vogel, Robin Jones, Nathan Bennett, Kathryn Stedham, and Matthew Sievers—to name just a few—will each select an original composition painted by Dunton during his career, and they will pay tribute to the masterwork through their own adaptation and reinterpretation of the original composition.??

W. Herbert Dunton was born in 1878 near Augusta, Maine on his family farm where he developed an early interest in hunting and the outdoors.??He travelled extensively as a young man, working as a ranch hand and cowboy. He visited places like Montana where he first fell in love with the West, leading to annual summer trips to Wyoming, Oregon, New Mexico, Montana, and Mexico.??

Dunton trained at the Cowles Art School in Boston in 1897, then furthered his education through training with Andreas M. Andersen, William L. Taylor, and Joseph Rodefer DeCamp. Moving to New York in 1903, Dunton worked in illustration, illustrating numerous books and working for magazines such as??Harper’s, Collier’s and Schribners.??In 1912 he enrolled at the Art Student’s League in New York, where he met and trained under Ernest L. Blumenschein.??Dunton visited Taos upon Blumenschein’s recommendation and eventually moved there in 1914.??

Dunton’s paintings are best known for perpetuating the romanticization of the American West.??Cowboy’s on horseback, animals, and the vast and majestic landscape were among his most common subjects. He did not only paint these subjects, but he felt strongly that this way of life and this rugged, unfettered landscape should be preserved.???

Dunton was the last of the six founding members of the Taos Society of Artists, a group established in 1915, between friends and fellow painters with similar interests in painting and the region.??Fellow founding members Oscar E. Berninghaus, Joseph Henry Sharp, E. Irving Couse, Ernest L. Blumenschein, and Bert Geer Phillips collectively made this group the regional art legend it is known as today.??The group disbanded in 1927, but during their twelve-year existence, they encouraged each other, challenged each other, and sought to find a national stage for the kind of western painting they had developed.??Dunton formally resigned from the group in 1922 due to Walter Ufer’s disparaging remarks about Blumenschein.??

After his resignation Dunton began self-promoting his art and scheduling one-man exhibitions throughout the region to include Kansas City, Missouri; Tulsa and Ponca City, Oklahoma; and the major Texas cities such as Amarillo, Dallas, El Paso, Fort Worth, Galveston, Houston and San Antonio. Art sales were slowing down due to the Depression, leading Dunton to begin focusing his efforts on drawing portraits and lithography.??He began having health struggles around 1928, first stemming from a horse related accident, then later battled multiple forms of cancer.??He died in 1936 at the age of 57.?

This exhibition is the fourth in a series of six scheduled theme exhibitions that cast a spotlight on the pioneering members of the Taos Society of Artists. We present?Taos Six Collection: An Homage to W. Herbert Dunton?three years after the debut exhibition of An Homage to Oscar E. Berninghaus, two years after the exhibition of An Homage to Joseph Henry Sharp, and one year after An Homage to E. Irving Couse.??We look forward to scheduled future exhibitions that continue the?Taos Six Collection?theme:?An Homage to Ernest L. Blumenschein?in 2024 and?An Homage to Bert Geer Phillips?in 2025.???“This is an important annual series for Blue Rain Gallery, and we are grateful to our many talented and devoted artists that have taken the challenge yearly.??Their commitment to this project has helped strengthen the enduring value and legacy of the series,” states Denise Phetteplace, Executive Director of Blue Rain Gallery.??The Taos Society of Artists has captivated many art enthusiasts and collectors over the years.??It created an allure that put Taos, New Mexico on the map, both nationally and internationally, as an important art destination.??As gallerists that have enjoyed the vitality of the art market in Northern New Mexico for 30 years, we of course feel a certain reverence toward the legacy of the Taos founding painters.?

Taos Six Collection: An Homage to W. Herbert Dunton?gives collectors and art enthusiasts alike an opportunity to simultaneously celebrate the past and present. Do not miss a chance to experience this exciting showing at Blue Rain Gallery!???