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Recent Acquisitions Releases Press Release Archive |
Philip John Evett: The Aura of the Past/Future February 5–April 18 2004 Philip John Evett: The Aura of the Past/Future opens at the Tyler Museum of Art on Thursday, February 5 and continues through Sunday, April 18. This exhibition was organized by the Tyler Museum of Art. Philip John Evett was born in Swanscombe, Kent, England in 1923. "I grew up in a small village in England," the artist related. "As a kid, I loved making things with my hands. In fact, I’ve never grown up. I’ve always loved putting things together. As a youngster, my friends and I constantly made model airplanes and boats out of whatever materials we could find. My parents gave me an Erector Set as a Christmas gift. I loved it and would add to it every Christmas until I finally had a whole trunk full of parts. I never made the usual things they showed in the illustrations that came with the set. I did abstract, free-form creations, never knowing what the end result would look like." Philip Evett still takes the same approach today as an artist that he used those many years ago. His sculptural pieces often begin without a plan and emerge from the making. Evett entered the Cambridge College of Art in Cambridge, England on a full scholarship in 1938. "I had a lot of academic training there, including the study of anatomy. That really fascinated me." Evett stated in a recent interview. "I only painted one semester at Cambridge. I really didn’t like it. I was more three-dimensional and object oriented. I later studied construction at Cambridge Technical College because at that time I wanted to be an architect. All these things, I believe, led me to become a sculptor." The outbreak of World War II interrupted his art studies and he joined the Royal Air Force. After the war, Evett studied sculpture at Belfast College of Art in Belfast, Ireland under Scott Sutherland. He then returned to the Cambridge College of Art where he was a part time Instructor in Sculpture. "England was dull after the war," Evett recalled. "Rationing was still in effect. My parents had just died, I had gotten a divorce, and I didn’t have much money. I had a friend in Cambridge who was from Oklahoma. He got a job with the University of Texas Press and moved from England to Austin. He said if I wanted to come to Texas, he would sponsor my immigration. I jumped at the chance and embarked on a long boat trip from Belfast to Houston. On the ride to Austin, I felt great. Texas immediately felt like home to me. (The ship that brought Philip Evett to the United States was named "Kindall Fish", and two of the pieces in this exhibition are titled Spirit of the "Kindall Fish", a poignant reminder of his Atlantic passage.) Evett met his current wife Joanne in Austin. Shortly after they married, they decided to move to San Antonio. From 1958 to 1962, Evett taught at the San Antonio Art Institute. He joined the faculty of Trinity University in 1960 and taught sculpture there until his retirement in 1988. He and Joanne now reside in Blanco, Texas. This exhibition is comprised of 42 sculptures and 12 works on paper. The sculptures are large, abstract figurative pieces fashioned from a variety of woods including maple, cherry, pecan, mahogany, cedar, and poplar. Both angular and sensuous, the sculptures are composed of pieces of wood fitted together with the seams showing and sanded smooth to the touch. There are also bronzes and sculptures incorporating welded aluminum and stoneware. Evett’s drawings are rarely exhibited and represent an important aspect of the artist’s work. Evett’s work can be found in public and private collections across the United States and Europe. He has had many one-man exhibitions and participated in numerous group exhibitions in the United States and Mexico. Philip Evett will give a gallery talk at the Museum on Thursday, February 5 at 6:30 p.m. A reception will follow. Both the exhibition and gallery talk/reception are free and open to the public. |