Shafer Gallery Opens R.C. Gorman Exhibit From Sagebrush Inn Collection

Navajo artist R.C. Gorman’s most successful and best-received works have been his studies of Navajo women, portrayed as archetypes of nurturing “earth mothers.” Barton County Community College’s Shafer Gallery will exhibit many of these works and others from the R.C. Gorman Sagebrush Inn Collection. The exhibit will open Sunday, Jan. 20, with a reception from 1 to 3 p.m.

Navajo painter, printmaker and sculptor, Gorman developed his artistic style from his study of art in Mexico, showing the influence of his teachers and the Mexican muralists. He maintained a studio and gallery for his own works and those of other American Indian artists in Taos, N.M.

In his archetypal portrayals of Navajo women, Gorman grouped women in conventional poses, engaged in domestic pursuits, showing both stolid affirmations and revelations of inner beauty and grace. He used various media, sometimes painting and drawing in acrylics, pastels and pencil in the same work. Gorman also did interpretations of Navajo rugs and pottery designs. He made great numbers of lithographs and also produced sculptures. His works in the exhibit will be available for purchase.

Rudolph Carl Gorman was born in Chinle, Ariz., in 1932. He attended Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, majoring in literature with a minor in art and received a scholarship in 1958 from the Navajo Tribal Council to study art at Mexico City College.

He often visited the Sagebrush Inn in Taos and many of his works are displayed throughout the inn, which is the source of this exhibition. Built by Helen and Frank Kentnor in 1929, the Sagebrush Inn most often accommodated guests traveling from New York to winter in Arizona. Many famous guests came to visit the Sagebrush Inn over the years. Gorman was one of those guests; painter Georgia O’Keeffe was another.

The inn was built in the traditional Southwest style with timber from surrounding forests and adobe bricks made from mud and straw. The Sagebrush Inn has been owned and operated by the Blair family for almost 30 years. Kenneth Blair bought the inn in 1974 from its second owner, Myron Vallier.

The Shafer Gallery will host guest speaker Jerry Shaw at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 30. A member of the Osage tribe, Shaw will speak about the values that characterize the American Indian culture. He is an instructor in the Ethnic Studies Program at Wichita State University where he has taught since 1972.

A graduate of Kansas State University, he received an Excellence in Teaching Award from WSU in 1991 and the Academy for Effective Teaching Award in 2000. He also earned the Leo Reano Memorial Award from the National Education Association in 1985 in recognition of his service to young Indian people.

Shaw served from 2002-06 on the Osage Tribal Council, the 10-member governing body of the Osage. He also served for 10 years as a board member of the Mid-America All-Indian Center in Wichita and is active in numerous community service organizations. His program is provided by the Kansas Humanities Council, a non-profit organization with 35 years of experience promoting the understanding of the history and ideas that shape people’s lives and strengthen their sense of community.

The gallery also will observe Black History Month in February with the exhibit of Smithsonian posters, “Black Women: Achievements Against the Odds,” which are part of the gallery’s permanent collection.

All Shafer Gallery exhibits are presented in part by the Kansas Arts Commission, a state agency, and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. Regular gallery hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m.  Monday through Friday; 1-4 p.m. Sunday. The gallery is closed on Saturday. Guided tours are available by appointment. The gallery will be closed on Jan. 21 in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

	“Crescent Moon ”
	“Taos Night”
	"Wedding Basket"
	“Woman At The Lake"
	“Woman With Lemons"