Gabriel and Bailey talk about SAMFA's Exhibit: "The Peacemakers: Works by Felice House and Dana Younger"
“For more than a century the West has occupied a special place in the imagination of Americans, with perhaps only one foot in reality,” the artists write. “By subverting expectations, House and Younger are questioning a genre, not only in its historical context, but as a contemporary fantasy with roots so deep in American culture that they are quite possibly inexorable.”
Through painting and sculpture, artists Felice House and Dana Younger are asking the audience to reevaluate the archetypes, mythology, and values of “The West” while reveling in its rich visual language.
Felice House is a figurative painter who strives, through her portrayals of women, to provide a counterpoint to the passive female representations found in art historical tradition. She projects contemporary women into iconic roles formerly played by western movie icons such as John Wayne, James Dean and Gary Cooper. By placing women in these roles, she points a finger at the limited access of women to power in culture. House is an Associate Professor in the School of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts at Texas A&M.
Dana Younger uses a wide variety of sculptural mediums to call attention to cultural heritage that warrants reexamination. His work juxtaposes romanticized Western conventions with real people and damage associated with westward expansion. Humor, beauty, and biting commentary combine in his work and invite the viewer to take another look.
Simultaneously playful and incisive, Younger and House come together to offer a new look at the Old West.
“The Peacemakers: Works by Felice House and Dana Younger” exhibit views “The West” through a post-modern lens that both challenges and honors this most American of genres. The exhibit will be shown at the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts in Gallery Verde (417 S. Oakes Street) from July 20-October 8, 2023.
