Chuck Sperry

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Chuck Sperry in “Litmus Test” Exhibition at Fort Wayne Museum of Art in September

Litmus Test: Works on Paper from the Psychedelic Era

Fort Wayne Museum of Art

September 15 – December 9, 2018

The Psychedelic Era was, among many things, a cultural frontier for colors and imagery. Music, politics, and drugs ignited an unprecedented expansion of art revolving around these elements. College campuses around the country, now seen as the birthing grounds for much of the psychedelic era’s ideals, were hotbeds for bright young minds to organize politically and artistically. From Berkeley College to the Grande Ballroom in Detroit, young idealists organized and the art of the era came to fruition. This exhibition will be our bridge to that time, showcasing a variety of psychedelic era works on paper.

Highlighting this experience is the Grande Ballroom in Detroit, Michigan.  The poster work and ephemera of Gary Grimshaw and the photography of Leni Sinclair will showcase the art that poured out of that time and place. Blotter sheets from Mark Mothersbaugh, H.R. Giger, S. Clay Wilson, Chuck Sperry, and more will represent the creative fuel for many of the artists of the time. Also featured will be the work of the poster artists of the time: Wes Wilson, Victor Moscoso, Stanley Mouse, Rick Griffin, and Alton Kelley. Lastly works by artists Alex and Allyson Grey and Isaac Abrams will display the fine art guided and influenced by the era and movement.

Exhibition Opening Party: September 14, 6-9pm

Celebrate opening weekend of this exhibit and Litmus Test: Works on Paper from the Psychedelic Era with live music, cash bar, appetizers, with many of the artists in attendance!

This exhibition is curated by independent curator and critic Carlo McCormick and FWMoA Curator of Contemporary Art Josef Zimmerman.

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Chuck Sperry Solo Museum Exhibition at Fort Wayne Museum of Art in September

Chuck Sperry Fort Wayne Museum of Art

All Access: Exploring Humanism in the Art of Chuck Sperry

September 15 – December 9, 2018

The Fort Wayne Museum of Art is pleased to celebrate Chuck Sperry’s first solo museum exhibition. Sperry has been preeminent in the rock poster genre since the late 1990s and has largely defined the genre in each decade since with his distinctive style and masterful printing technique.

Sperry has drawn inspiration for this work from the classical Greco-Roman idea of the muses, and their metaphorical home on Mount Helikon — the source of inspiration for all things art and music. Naiads, nymphs and muses in their richly patterned floral settings make their way into Sperry’s work. Dripping with brightly colored flowers, decked in gold and silver textures, Sperry’s blue-silver muses sing a paean to the long tradition of humanism reactivated in the struggle for social progress, universal human rights, a more perfect democracy and the utopian ideals of the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood of San Francisco where Sperry has made his home since 1989.

Symbolism, Secession, ukiyo-e, and psychedelia blend in Sperry’s flattened, post-modern figurative art: all potent ingredients Sperry strives self-consciously to re-evaluate for the 21st Century.

The exhibit will feature 2 large scale tapestries designed by Sperry, 25 screen prints on oak panel, original ink drawings, and ephemeral color progressives which illuminate Sperry’s unique printing process.

There will be several new wood panel editions, and two new paper editions with variant editions available to acquire.

I will be releasing “Chthoneon, The Art of Chuck Sperry” the 136 page follow up of my art book “Helikon, The Muses of Chuck Sperry”. 

This exhibition is organized by the Fort Wayne Museum of Art and its Curator of Contemporary Art Josef Zimmerman.

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Exhibition Opening Party: September 14, 6-9pm

Celebrate opening weekend of this exhibit and Litmus Test: Works on Paper from the Psychedelic Era with live music, cash bar, appetizers, and face time with the one and only Chuck Sperry!

Printmaking Workshop 1 with Chuck Sperry: September 15, 1:30pm • SOLD OUT

Learn from the singular figure of psychedelic poster printmaking Chuck Sperry with a hand-on workshop. Pre-registration with fee of $30 is required. Fee includes all supplies and your take-home creation.

Printmaking Workshop 2 with Chuck Sperry: September 15, 3:30pm • SOLD OUT

Learn from the singular figure of psychedelic poster printmaking Chuck Sperry with a hand-on workshop. Pre-registration with fee of $30 is required. Fee includes all supplies and your take-home creation.

Curator’s Tour: November 1, 12:15-1pm
Curator of Contemporary Art Josef Zimmerman will lead you on an engaging tour of this exhibit. From specialized and personal points of view, curators offer unique perspectives on all FWMoA exhibits. Tours are free with gallery admission.

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Sperry “Justice” On View At Fort Wayne Museum Of Art In Permanent Collection

A Year of Making Meaning: New Additions to the Collection 2016
December 10, 2016 – March 5, 2017

“A Year of Making Meaning: New Additions to the Collection 2016 showcases the highlights of works FWMoA has acquired in its permanent collection over the last year.

The artwork selected gives an overview of our recent focus in collecting. While we are always on the hunt for great works of art, our recent collecting focus includes contemporary glass, photography, and painting; all of which is shown in this gallery. This focus is tied directly to our strategic goal of growing the permanent collection with objects of diverse media and maker.

Another aspect highlighted in A Year of Making Meaning is the way in which we expand our collection. Acquisition occurs through gifts or donations from collectors, and purchases directly from artists, galleries, and auction houses.

Through these various avenues of procurement we have opportunities to continually make strategic purchases for the collection. As a museum we are committed to collecting, preserving, and presenting American and related art to engage and educate you, our audience. This exhibition allows us to share with you the numerous works in our collection that may not always be on public display. As our collection grows, we take pride in sharing our treasures with you and future generations of art lovers in our region.” – FWMOA

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Last Week On View • “Out of Print: Pushing the Boundaries in the Art of Print”, Fort Wayne Museum of Art

ChuckSperry1

Out of Print: Pushing the Boundaries in the Art of Print
Fort Wayne Museum of Art
March 19 – May 29, 2016

Exhibiting artists: Bill Fick, Chuck Sperry, Crystal Wagner, Dennis McNett, Greg Gossel, Morning Breath, Ravi Zupa, and Troy Lovegates.

Printing is one of the oldest forms of art. Woodblock printing was the first to develop as early as 220 A.D. in China. From this point, printing evolved into many forms, most memorably by way of the invention of the printing press around 1440 that served as the most efficient way to educate the masses through newspapers and books.

In all this time the medium is still relevant, but more important, artists are finding new ways with which to use old methods. This exhibition showcases a select handful of artists who are reshaping the old ways into new on multiple levels.

This body of work serves as evidence that traditional printing is far from obsolete, but it will continue to be used and expanded by artists looking for new ways to express themselves: in with the new, and out and with the old.

SPERRY-FWMOA

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Sperry Art in Museum Exhibition, “Out of Print: Pushing the Boundaries in the Art of Print”, Fort Wayne Museum of Art

Semele

Semele, 2016
20 x 30.75
Edition of 30
7 colors on oak panel
Signed and Numbered

Out of Print: Pushing the Boundaries in the Art of Print

March 19 – May 29, 2016

I am deeply honored to participate in the upcoming exhibition at the Fort Wayne Museum of Art entitled “Out of Print: Pushing the Boundaries in the Art of Print.” I will be revealing my newest piece at the exhibition in the Museum: “Semele,” an oak panel screen print, based on art made for Widespread Panic’s legendary concert at Madison Square Garden in 2013. In addition, my screen printed art panel, “Justice,” which premiered at Spoke Art Gallery’s appearance at New York Comic Convention, 2014, has been received into the permanent collection of the Museum at this exhibition.

I invite all of you to attend during the two month duration of this exciting exhibition!

“Out of Print” Opening: March 19, 2016

Seasonal Party to celebrate “Out of Print”: Friday, April 8, 2016 – Facebook Event

Thanks to everyone who contacted the Fort Wayne Museum of Art to acquire my “Semele” piece! There was overwhelming response. This piece is no longer available. 

Also on view!

P1170108

Justice, 2014
(Received into the permanent collection of the Museum)
18 x 24
Edition of 25
7 colors on oak panel
Signed and Numbered

P1170091

Olympia, 2014
29 x 23
Edition of 25
8 colors on oak panel
Signed and Numbered

P1170100

Daphne, 2014
23 x 31.5
Edition of 25
7 colors on oak panel
Signed and Numbered

More about the exhibition:

Exhibiting artists: Bill Fick, Chuck Sperry, Crystal Wagner, Dennis McNett, Greg Gossel, Morning Breath, Ravi Zupa, and Troy Lovegates.

Printing is one of the oldest forms of art. Woodblock printing was the first to develop as early as 220 A.D. in China. From this point, printing evolved into many forms, most memorably by way of the invention of the printing press around 1440 that served as the most efficient way to educate the masses through newspapers and books.

In all this time the medium is still relevant, but more important, artists are finding new ways with which to use old methods. This exhibition showcases a select handful of artists who are reshaping the old ways into new on multiple levels.

This body of work serves as evidence that traditional printing is far from obsolete, but it will continue to be used and expanded by artists looking for new ways to express themselves: in with the new, and out and with the old.

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More about the Chuck Sperry:

Born in 1962 in Dayton, Ohio, Chuck Sperry received his education from the University of Missouri, School of Journalism, with a dual major in Art and Journalism.

For over 20 years, the artist has explored his unique signature style of silkscreen technique that blends splendid artistry with impeccable craftsmanship. With perfect precision, Sperry utilizes many color layers, translucent inks, metallic inks mixed from raw powder, in his complex designs.

The pieces Sperry selected for “Out of Print” reflect his ongoing exploration of Classical subjects updated to the 21st Century, with echoes of the Vienna Secession and Belle Époque. Sperry’s art is energized by the political street art and the concert posters he has prolifically created throughout his life. The pieces in this exhibition express the synergy of social concern and popular iconography, graffiti and detourned classical themes, political themes and imagery drawn from the Century-long world tradition of poster-making.

Renee de Cossio, curator, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art:

“Never known for following the consensus of any art establishment, Chuck Sperry has a strict loyalty to his craft, and has become a leading innovator of the rock poster art form.  His suspicion and disdain for mainstream American politics often characterizes his approach to making art.   With a sincere dedication to a broad public audience, Sperry reflects a social consciousness and draws much from the immediate urban environment.”

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Details of Sperry art in “Out of Print” at Fort Wayne Museum of Art:

Semele-Chuck-Sperry-detail

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P1170093

P1170092

 

 

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Archives

Sperry Books: “Color x Color” • “Helikon” • “Chthoneon”

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