Arthur Orr's Abstractions: On Canvas and Paper

Zeitgeist and Wilder are pleased to present paintings from the estate of Nashville icon, Arthur Orr.

A selection of large-scale canvases and “prototype” drawings spanning the early seventies to mid-eighties will open at the gallery Saturday, February 1st and remain on view through Saturday, February 29th. The opening reception will take place during the WeHo Art Crawl.
 
Many have collected and are familiar with Arthur Orr’s hard-edged abstraction that features delicate line work with subtle color changes. For three decades, he focused on geometric shapes and structures outlined in color gradients floating in various articulated backgrounds. Many of the references the artist carried from the 1960’s into the 1980’s and beyond continue to be relevant to painters today.
 
Arthur Orr arrived in Nashville in 1967 joining the faculty at the Peabody School for Teachers and eventually went on to teach at the Cheekwood Fine Arts Center, Watkins College of Art and Design, and Tennessee State University and Fisk University. He was a guest lecturer at the University of Kentucky, Vanderbilt University, and The Art Institute of Chicago. His work has been exhibited locally at Cumberland gallery, The Frist Museum of Art, The Tennessee State Museum, the Tennessee Arts Commission, the High Museum in Atlanta and was featured in an exhibition series that later became the Whitney Biennial at the Whitney Museum of Art.
 
Orr passed away in Nashville in 2005 but his presence and legacy continue to be felt. At a time that sees the Nashville studio artist community recognized worldwide, it is artists like Arthur Orr, Barbara Bullock, Robert Ryman, Red Grooms, and William Edmonson that continue to build Nashville’s reputation.

Source: Zeitgeist