Art in the Midwest and its place in America

A set of paintings on display at a gallery in downtown Columbia presents an art history case study of the complex relationships between artists, galleries and the paintings themselves. It also revives an ongoing conversation about the presence of the Midwest in the larger landscape of American painting. In this conversation, you'll hear the story of those paintings on display, along with that larger discussion of how our region continues to find its place in the national and international art world.

Panelists:
Melissa Williams, owner, Melissa Williams Fine Art
Jennifer Perlow, owner, PS Gallery
Joan Stack, curator of art collections, State Historical Society of Missouri
David Houston, former director of curatorial, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Ark.; and newly appointed director of the Bo Bartlett Center at Columbus State University (joining the program by phone)

TO SEE JOHN WEHMER'S PAINTINGS AND READ MORE ABOUT THE GALLERY SHOW:

• John Wehmer unveils collection (Vox magazine; includes slideshow with audio of Wehmer talking about the paintings)
• Unseen genius comes into view (Columbia Daily Tribune)

The links below provide more information about artists mentioned on this program:
Thomas Hart Benton
George Caleb Bingham
William Henry Chandler
Gary Lucy
Michael McClure
Billyo O'Donnell (plus, our previous program about his work can be found by clicking here.)
Joseph Orr
C.M. Russell

And a few other Missouri artists of note:
Tom Huck
Paul Jackson
David Spear
Frank Stack

And if you'd like to add others to our list, please use the comment form below.