The Rise of the Self-Taught Artist in America · High Museum of Art

The Rise of the Self-Taught Artist in America · High Museum of Art

John Kane — Scene From The Scottish Highlands — c.1927

From August 20 to December 11, 2021, the High Museum of Art in Atlanta presents “Gatecrashers: The Rise of the Self-Taught Artist in America”, a tribute to the painters of the early 20th century who rebelled against the requirements of the mainstream art world in the United States.

Source: High Museum of Art, Atlanta. Image: John Kane, “Scene From The Scottish Highlands”, c.1927. Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh.

The term “gatecrasher” refers to how these artists overcame obstacles related to class, race and gender to gain recognition in the often elitist art world. The museum explains how, after World War I, a group of artists without formal training (academies or art schools) began to exhibit their work in major museums, “crashing the gates” of the art world.

One of the most famous paintings shown in the exhibition is John Kane’s “Scene from the Scottish Highlands”, which was included in the Carnegie Museum of Art’s contemporary art international in 1927, possibly the first work by a modern self-taught artist to be included in a major American museum. One of the most notable cases of a self-taught artist was Anna Mary Robertson, “Grandma” Moses, who overcame the obstacles of age, gender, race and lack of formal training, starting painting at the age of 70 and quickly gaining public appreciation.

Although most of the works in the exhibition have a rather jovial appearance, there is also room for more “serious” works, such as John Kane’s “Pietà” (1933). Other artists included in “Gatecrashers” are Horace Pippin, William Doriani and Josephine Joy. #2021 #HighMuseumofArtAtlanta #theartwolf