A pair of Oklahoma artists will add a touch of the Old West to Paseo Arts District’s April art walk event.
Cletus Smith and HR Kaiser are the featured artists at Summer Wine Art Gallery, 2928-B Paseo St., and venue co-owner Jim Hiller said he’s excited to showcase two nationally renowned talents.
Summer Wine Art Gallery’s Three-Day Southwestern Exhibit & Sale runs April 1-3 and marks the second of the venue’s quarterly openings.
“Cletus Smith is an Oklahoma legend,” Hiller said. “He’s been painting for 50 years, and he’s 75-plus years old. He’s an extraordinary individual.”
Smith has been a mainstay of the Southwestern art scene for decades. He will show up to 35 pieces at the opening 6 p.m. April 1 during the Paseo’s First Friday Gallery Art Walk. Hiller described Smith’s work, mostly oils and watercolors, as vivid and emotionally wrenching.
“He primarily does landscapes, mostly of the Taos, New Mexico, area,” Hiller said. “He also does a few of Oklahoma and Venice, Italy, but his paintings are primarily of New Mexico, and they’re outstanding. The colors and depth are what makes a Cletus painting, and anyone who knows his work can spot one immediately.”
Smith worked as a graphic designer, illustrator and industrial designer for years while honing his style. His work is featured prominently throughout Oklahoma City, including several works on permanent display at Integris Baptist Medical Center.
“[Smith’s] composition, the colors, they’re all very natural. Anyone who sees a painting of his of a road with sage growing on both sides with mountains in the background knows if they’ve walked down that road or not,” Hiller said. “He really transports the viewer to another place.”
Summer Wine also will feature a three-dimensional artist: sculptor HR Kaiser.
A nationally renowned bronze sculptor whose work has been featured in Western Art Collector and Cowboys & Indians magazines as well as several local publications, Kaiser will display up to 25 bronze sculptures, mostly of cowboys and Native Americans.
“We will have every piece of her recent cowboy series,” said Hiller. “She also has done several Native American series, and we’ll have several pieces from those,” he said. “Her work is absolutely wonderful, and she’s getting to be very well-known.”
After the Friday evening opening, the show is scheduled to run through April 3. Both artists will perform live demonstrations for guests — Smith on Saturday and Sunday and Kaiser on Friday and Saturday.
“We’d love everyone to come out and see these two outstanding Southwestern artists,” Hiller said. “It’s going to be a great show.”
Visit summerwinegallery.com for more information.
Print headline: Intoxicating display, Summer Wine Art Gallery showcases renowned Cletus Smith and HR Kaiser works during its April 1-3 exhibit and sale.
This article appears in Mar 23-29, 2016.