Sacramento Magazine 'THE BEST OF SACRAMENTO' issue
JUNE 1990
JUNE EVENTS
ON HORIZONTAL HOLD
AS a clue that all is not right in paradise, California Artist William Spencer III has been known to place a faltering television screen among slightly tarnished images of Palms, Cadillacs and trailer houses in his large mixed media paintings.
'It was the visuals, his color range and the hard hitting first impressions which first attracted me to his work,' says Thom Green owner of Gallery Medusa, which will host the artist's second one-man show during June in Sacramento's eclectic mid town area. 'However, Thom adds, Once you get past the visuals it is clear that the artist is making a statement with each of his works. The media and how it influences our society is a common thread in much of this particular show which we have entitled: 'On Horizontal Hold'.
Reared in a home without television, the 34 year old Spencer casts a very different and often satirical eye upon Television but always with some humor and style. His work entitled: 'Talkies in your Home' is currently on display in the prestigious Crocker-Kingsley exhibition less than two years after he began painting Fine Art works. That show was juried by the curator of the Whitney Museum of Modern Art. Spencer's work was chosen from among 830 works by California Artists for the exhibit which is hosted by the oldest art community in the West.
A former commercial illustrator with no formal art training, Spencer often silkscreens his own photos or vintage advertising photos onto portions of his canvases.
Many of the works began as dreams, Spencer says. He often must search for just the right objects to populate his paintings. He traveled several days to find the old trailer in 'Salton Sea TV (above) which he found in the California deserts south of Palm springs.
'Many times, says Spencer, I am compelled to paint a particular painting and must wait until well after it is finished and even sold to figure out what it really means.
Spencer was recently chosen among Sacramento area galleries for the coveted Northern California Rising Star award by 'On the Wings' Arts magazine and honored by a dinner and reception held by those galleries in honor of the Rising Stars in the Northern California Art scene.
For details on the upcoming show, see ART.
-Dianne Heimer
Sacramento Magazine - 'The Best of Sacramento' issue 1990
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