Billy Schenck knows when to play it safe and he knows when to—metaphorically speaking—throw Molotov cocktails into the heart of the Old West, New West and Wests that haven’t even been named yet.
The artist, sometimes referred to as the Granddaddy of Western Pop Art, will be presenting audacious new work at a solo show at Altamira Fine Art starting on June 30 in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The show title, An Aesthetic Liability, is fitting for the kind of mischief Schenck so thoroughly enjoys capturing in paint.
Bad Bunny #2, oil on canvas, 50 x 70 in.“The gallery was originally going to use that for an ad, but I liked the title too much. It’s a little irreverent and politically incorrect,” Schenck says from his Santa Fe studio. “When it comes to all these accolades and very pretty adjectives to describe artists or what they do, I like flipping that upside down. No one has advertised themselves like that, and I want to be the first one.”
Schenck may be one of the busiest artists in the West. In recent years, he’s had an abundance of solo shows, group shows, museums exhibitions, retrospectives and even a recent record-breaking auction piece, as well as work for his Schenck Foundation Collection, which aims to preserve his legacy as an artist and art collector. But as busy as he’s been, recent years have been filled with romantic images of the frontier, landscapes of the Southwest and his larger-than-life iconography of the Old West. For An Aesthetic Liability, the artist is ready to lean into the edgier material that has made him such a provocative bomb thrower for more than 50 years. These images include the humorous and frequently bleak caption paintings, half-tone dot paintings that call back to Pop Art’s origins, and several nudes, which frequently generate complaints from more traditional Western viewers.
The Lone Ranger, oil on canvas, 30 x 36 in.
They Killed My Family, oil on canvas, 36 x 50 in.
Anasazi #3, oil on canvas, 36 x 36 in.In one of the new caption works, Schenck paints a cowboy saying, “They killed my entire family!!” A smiling woman on his arm replies, “Oh Cliff, you don’t really need them…” The myths, legends and histories of the West are all fair game. Few artists can get away with these swings, but Schenck can.
“Billy’s career is one of the most exciting stories in contemporary Western art. His career has spanned half a century and he has challenged, expanded and reimagined how to tell authentic Western stories with a sharp, modern-art edge. As the founder of Western Pop, he brought and continues to bring the language of Pop Art into conversation with the myths, humor, grit and cinematic power of the American West,” says Altamira owner Jason Williams. “There is a boldness to Billy’s paintings but also an intelligence and discipline that comes from a lifetime of studying culture, history, film and combining it all with his time living in the West, not to mention a little of his undying humor mixed in. He is an avid art collector, an expert in prehistoric pottery and is always brimming with new ideas to get down on canvas. His inclusion in the permanent collections of more than 60 museums speaks to the significance of his contribution to Western art. His upcoming show in Jackson Hole is an exciting collection of new work that spans most of his artistic range—from straight Pop Art and caption paintings to romantic scenes with Native imagery and gunfighters in the throes of battle. His continued momentum, success and influence is incredible, and through his dedication, imagination and seemingly endless energy remains one of the leading voices of the New West.”
Terminator, oil on canvas, 55 x 55 in.
High Tide on the Oxbow, oil on canvas, 40 x 50 in.
For Schenck, lighting fires is almost a pastime, and yet he has a deeper purpose: he wants viewers of his paintings to challenge their own perceptions and understandings about the American West and rethink the roles of the heroes and villains.
“I absolutely do enjoying pushing those buttons. I was once accused of being an in-your-face kind of guy, and I sure am. I love being an anarchist. This is why I’m an aesthetic liability. I want to take the whole genre out further than it’s ever been,” he says. “But even then, it’s always in the back of my mind if I’m going too far. A lot of this audience is conservative, and I don’t want to burn down my own house to prove a point. But I do want to prove a point.”
Misty, oil on canvas, 36 x 30 in.
Bull Rider, oil on canvas, 45 x 35 in.
Schenck’s new show runs through July 14 in Jackson Hole. A reception will be held on July 3 from 5 to 7 p.m. About 22 works are expected for the solo show. —
Altamira Fine Art 172 Center Street » Jackson Hole, WY 83001 » (307) 739-4700 » www.altamiraart.com
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