Past exhibits and programs | Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art

______________________
INTUIT:
The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art
756 N. Milwaukee Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622
information: intuit@art.org
phone: 312.243.9088
fax: 312.243.9089

Hours:
Tues-Sat 11am-5pm
Thurs 11am-7:30pm
Admission is free

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In the eyes of Mr. Dawson
January 13 - March 18, 2006
Opening reception Friday, January 13th from 5 - 8 pm

press release
images

Untitled male figure , 1975 (?)
carved and stained wood
Roger Brown Study Collection of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Untitled male figure, n.d.
carved and painted wood
Roger Brown Study Collection of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Male figure with hat , n.d
carved and painted wood
Collection of Susann Craig

"Mayor Daley," n.d.
carved and painted wood, hair
Collection of Susann Craig

Male figure with painted clothes and articulated gun in holster, 1976
Collection of Marjorie and Harvey Freed

Untitled male figure , n.d.
carved and painted wood
Collection of Cindy and Mike Noland

Untitled male figure with striped shirt , 1979
carved and painted wood
Collection of Cindy and Mike Noland

Untitled male figure with hat, 1977
carved and painted wood
Collection of Stacy and Tim Bruce

Untitled male figure with white coat , 1979
carved and painted wood
Collection of Stacy and Tim Bruce

A Conversation on the Art of William Dawson, 6pm, February 9, 2006
Prominent Chicago collectors and art enthusiasts who knew William Dawson share their personal experiences with Dawson and reflect upon the significance of his art.

Press release:
Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art will present the exhibition “In the Eyes of Mr. Dawson” from January 13 th, 2006 to March 18 th, 2006 at Intuit, 756 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago IL 60622. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday 11:00 am to 5:00 pm and Thursday 11:00 am to 7:30 pm; admission is free.

Sculptor William Dawson grew up in Huntsville, Alabama but spent most of life in Chicago. Dawson worked for thirty-five years as a produce distributor in the South Water Street market where he became the first black member of the Teamster Union. It was not until he semi-retired in 1965 at the age of 64 that he began to seriously devote his time to art. Working part-time as a security guard, Dawson passed his time by carving wood figures. When he retired completely, he focused all his energy on creating sculptures of men and women that range in size from several inches to several feet. Dawson’s figures evoke a sense of toy-like playfulness while still remaining rooted in the everyday.

Curator John Cain, Executive Director of the Northern Indiana Arts Association, has drawn from the resources of local collectors to assemble this exhibition. Not since the artist’s retrospective at the Chicago Cultural Center in January 1990, held a few months before Dawson’s death, has an exhibition focused on his eclectic work.

“In the Eyes of Mr. Dawson” will run concurrently with “Accidental Mysteries: Extraordinary Vernacular Photographs from the Collection of John and Teenuh Foster.”

Images:

William Dawson at entrance of 1990 Cultural Center exhibition, photo by David Kargl

William Dawson's room, photo by Ken Burkhart/Russell Phillips