2007.53.34 Oliver, Autoritratto | DMA Staging Content Management System

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

Although Kermit Oliver earned high praise during his early career in 1970s Houston, the experience left him feeling like an outsider due to the racial divide between himself and his patrons. He moved to Waco, Texas, in 1984 and continues to avoid the spotlight despite numerous honors: his work was installed in the recently opened National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC; he was named the Texas State Two-Dimensional Artist for 2017; and he designed seventeen scarves for the famed French fashion house Hermès. Oliver describes his art as “painted collages,” and this self-portrait illustrates the way he arranges animals, plants, figures, and architecture into singular images.

Excerpt from

Emily Schiller, Label text, Center for Creative Connections, 2018.

NOTES

Catalogue essays

Barrett Collection of Contemporary Texas Art

Portraiture

Still life ("nature morte")

Artist/designers

Cultures

Geography

Process/materials

Historical periods

Individuals

Subject terms

RELATED OBJECTS

PROVENANCE

Until 2008: Nona and Richard Barrett, Dallas, TX

2008: Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Nona and Richard Barrett

The main source for this provenance is the text "Barrett Collection of Contemporary Texas Art" by Charles Wylie for the 2008 exhibition Lone Star Legacy II: Barrett Collection of Contemporary Texas Art, available in the Online Collection.

AUDIO ASSETS

VIDEO ASSETS

IMAGE ASSETS

WEB RESOURCES

National Public Radio~Learn about Oliver's collaboration with Hermès.

ARCHIVAL RESOURCES

FUN FACTS

TEACHING IDEAS

RULES

Apply to objects where number equals 2007.53.34

General Description

Although Kermit Oliver earned high praise during his early career in 1970s Houston, the experience left him feeling like an outsider due to the racial divide between himself and his patrons. He moved to Waco, Texas, in 1984 and continues to avoid the spotlight despite numerous honors: his work was installed in the recently opened National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC; he was named the Texas State Two-Dimensional Artist for 2017; and he designed seventeen scarves for the famed French fashion house Hermès. Oliver describes his art as “painted collages,” and this self-portrait illustrates the way he arranges animals, plants, figures, and architecture into singular images.