In the vision of artist Otis Jones, form, composition and color merged with a vivid marker of the maker’s hand. His irregularly shaped, handmade frames with their visible staples and sanded and reapplied paint allowed him to create a depth of visual field that went beyond minimalism to establish an elemental, meditative state in the viewer.
Says his longtime gallerist, Barry Whistler, who mounted a show of Jones’ work last fall: “It’s just this kind of combination of painting and sculpture that he was always pushing, and it was so consistent. The work morphed [over the years], and that comes from his love of collecting American pottery, folk art and African art. There were all these influences around him.”
A portrait of artist Otis Jones in the Barry Whistler Gallery in Dallas.
Born in Galveston in 1946, the Dallas-based painter passed away on Sept. 5. He labored for decades on his uncompromising vision, finally being embraced internationally in recent years, with shows at galleries in New York, Brussels and Copenhagen. This starry coda to his career was especially remarkable as he underwent a double lung transplant 13 years ago and achieved much of his success after his recovery.
“He was very lucky to have at least enjoyed this terrific international recognition,” says architect Russell Buchanan, who bonded with Jones in the mid-’90s over their love of modernist furniture. “He could have easily gone without notice until well after he was gone. If you look at the body of work, at least from the time I knew him, it’s immediately recognizable as an Otis Jones. You don’t confuse it with anybody else, and that’s just sheer determination.”
Related
Also recognizable for his round glasses and monochromatic black, white and khaki wardrobe, Jones was a constant, supportive figure in the local creative scene.
News Roundups
“He was a very witty and smart person, and he was very much respected,” says a longtime friend and colleague, sculptor Linnea Glatt. “He was very interested in style, and he presented himself that way. There was an accrued sophistication about him, and in some sense that was his work too — it had a crudeness about it but at the same time a kind of honed elegance.”
Otis Jones’ 2016 work “Red Oxide Circle with Red and Black Circles” on display at Barry Whistler Gallery in Dallas.
Allison V. Smith
A longtime supporter and friend of Jones, interior designer Alice Cottrell, said Jones was a “perfect gentleman” who kept the passion and integrity running through his process throughout his career.
“You just never know when it will happen for you, and I’m just so glad he kept going and his work was getting the prices it deserved because it’s so beautiful — it’s so quiet and subtle and there’s so much that was put into each piece. I’m just a huge fan of his work and a fan of him as a person.”
Details
A memorial to Otis Jones will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 16, at Barry Whistler Gallery, 315 Cole St., Suite 120.
‘Art keeps us human’: Pleasant Grove galleries use art to transform neighborhood
Mi Barrio 214 and Gallery 86 are reshaping Pleasant Grove by giving artists and neighbors a place to create.
What in the labubu is going on? North Texans are obsessed
On Sunday, labubu fans gathered at a festival in Dallas’ RedBird Mall to buy the quirky plush dolls.