Steve Wheeler's Mystical Modernism Revisited in Conversation and Exhibition
Following the January exhibition titled 'Steve Wheeler: The Oracle Visiting the 21st Century' at the David Findlay Jr. Gallery in New York, David Brody and Drew Lowenstein examined the legacy of Steve Wheeler (1912-1992) in contemporary abstraction. Although associated with the Indian Space Painters, Wheeler distanced himself from that label later in his life. His artwork incorporates Tlingit eagles, Aztec symbols, and Native American themes, utilizing preparatory sketches to create interlocking color planes. Despite passing away in relative obscurity, his influence persists in the works of artists like Tom Burckhardt and Elizabeth Murray. The exhibition showcased both Wheeler and ISP artists, emphasizing generational connections. Brody and Lowenstein discussed Wheeler's significance, referencing influences from Walt Disney's Fantasia (1940) and artists such as Raymond Scott and Stuart Davis.
Key facts
- Steve Wheeler (1912-1992) was an artist associated with the Indian Space Painters.
- A group exhibition, 'Steve Wheeler: The Oracle Visiting the 21st Century,' was held in January at David Findlay Jr. Gallery.
- Wheeler rejected the Indian Space Painters label late in life, causing a disturbance at an ISP show.
- His work incorporates Native American motifs like Tlingit eagles and Aztec glyphs into dense, hyperdimensional paintings.
- Wheeler's technique involved careful preparatory drawings and interlocking color planes, contrasting with Abstract Expressionist drips.
- Contemporary artists influenced by Wheeler include Tom Burckhardt, Elizabeth Murray, Luke Gray, Bruce Pearson, Fred Tomaselli, and James Siena.
- Wheeler had a 1997 retrospective at the Montclair Art Museum in New Jersey, covered by the New York Times.
- The conversation linked Wheeler to broader movements like the Transcendentalist Painting Group in Taos, New Mexico.
Entities
Artists
- Steve Wheeler
- David Brody
- Drew Lowenstein
- Mark Rothko
- Adolph Gottlieb
- Jackson Pollock
- Philip Guston
- Paolo Uccello
- Tom Burckhardt
- Elizabeth Murray
- Luke Gray
- Bruce Pearson
- Fred Tomaselli
- James Siena
- Robert Barrell
- Peter Busa
- Keith Haring
- Maurice Golubov
- George L.K. Morris
- John Ferren
- Wassily Kandinsky
- Paul Klee
- Stuart Davis
- Howard Hodgkin
- Victor Hugo
- Marcel Duchamp
- John Cage
- Raymond Scott
- Henri Matisse
- Emil Bisttram
- Raymond Jonson
- Ernest L. Blumenschein
- Georgia O'Keeffe
- Marsden Hartley
- Rockwell Kent
- Lawren Harris
- Gordon Onslow-Ford
- Wolfgang Paalen
- Lee Mullican
- Matt Mullican
- Rita Hayworth
- Inka Essenhigh
- Kenny Scharf
- Alex Grey
- Paul McCarthy
- Mike Kelley
- Willem de Kooning
- Albert Pinkham Ryder
- Charles Burchfield
- Edward Hopper
Institutions
- artcritical
- David Findlay Jr. Gallery
- Gary Snyder gallery
- Jewish Museum
- Montclair Art Museum
- MoMA
- Whitney Museum of American Art
- D. Wigmore Fine Art
- New School
- Hallmark
Locations
- New York
- United States
- New Jersey
- Taos
- New Mexico
- Mexico
- England
- Northern California
- Pennsylvania
- Toronto
- Canada
- Zurich
- Switzerland