Existing comment:
LATE REALISM
Gates had passed through abstract expressionism and come out the other side to build a body of work that was completely original, really unlike anything his peers were doing. Still employing masterful brushwork and descriptive gesture, with growing surety he expanded on his formal canniness. The large paintings of this mature period have been brought into perfect, timeless balance.
In a large painting like Untitled (1970), Gates is no longer only concerned with capturing the specifics of place and time. He is reaching for the universal. The table and fruit are captured in raking sunlight against a black interior space. The color is intense, the surfaces are activated by his painterly brushwork, but the composition is nonetheless completely poised in a way that, of all the arts, only paintings can be.
Once again, it is important to remember that Gates achieved this stillness, at least in part, by using geometry to structure his compositions. He taught the use of the golden ratio in composition to his students as far back as the 1950s. As his paintings grew in scale, this underlying geometry slowly became even more overt. Gates remained consistently invested in structure, regardless of the subject, style, or medium.
As we look now at Gates' work, let us remember the following salient points. Gates came of age in the first half of the twentieth century, shaped by two World Wars and the Great Depression. He found his own way around the various avant-garde waves that came and went, painting what he saw with his heart and his mind, not what was being promoted as the latest thing by critical voices or the marketplace. His work was optimistic during difficult times, becoming almost celebratory during his middle, expressionist years, and then quiet and thoughtful as he grew into maturity. His art had many sources and influences, but it was always his own.
Gates painted life with expressive brushwork and perfectly tuned color. His mastery of the formal qualities informing his compositions ultimately gave us works to contemplate in complete stillness. The late works especially transcend their simple subjects: light falling on fruit, vases, or saints. They present a catalog of changeless verities, perhaps intended to inspire viewers to find their own quiet center within a chaotic universe. In addition to his masterful art, and the range of experience he pursued to bring more to that art, Gates left us a model for how we might dedicate ourselves and grow through interesting times and adventures. As we consider his artistic accomplishments and the example he has set, it is possible that we, too, may become people engaged in the world, responsive to its challenges. As Gates lived and taught, we are here to change the world. If we speak with our own voice, we can make a difference. |