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William T. Wiley
Victory at See Unique painting with sea shanty by famed California artist Signed

2001

About the Item

WILLIAM T. WILEY Victory at See, 2001 Watercolor, Graphite and Hand Coloring Signed, titled and dated on the front Unframed (ships flat) A fantastic unique work on paper by the legendary William T. Wiley - the poet laureate of California funk - a hugely popular, brilliant and creative teacher and artist and unparalleled visual storyteller; an ironic punster with a quirky and distinctive sensibility - and the subject of a major retrospective at the Smithsonian: What's it all about? Wiley had earned a loyal cult following. A terrific artist, professor, poet and creative mind - and brilliant with words. This work, entitled "Victory at See", depicts a ship called "Coke Express", and features a shark, an abstract shape and a character with a yellow pitchfork. There are then thought bubbles with statements (word pictures) from the players in this maritime drama - including the captain, the shark and even the abstract shapes in the picture! Then trouble starts - and the plot thickens. It's the artist's distinctive take on the old seafaring tradition of tall tales and sea shanties - the perfect venue for a visual storyteller and social commentator like Wiley - long before conceptual artists like Mel Bochner stripped the words of narrative entirely. Wiley's clever and visually impressive work is a singular delight. William T. Wiley Biography William T. Wiley was born in Bedford, Indiana, in 1937. He attended the San Francisco Art Institute, where he received his BFA in 1961 and MFA in 1962. His first solo exhibition was held at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art in 1960. Since then, his work is in the permanent collections of institutions such as the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, and the Stedelijk van Abbe Museum in Eindhoven, The Netherlands. His awards include: Painting Prize, San Francisco Art Institute, 1959; First Prize, San Francisco Art Institute Festival, 1960; Fletcher Award, California School of Fine Arts, 1960; First Prize in Painting, Oakland Annual, 1960; New Talent Award, Art In America, 1961; Painting Prize, 65th Annual Exhibition, Art Institute of Chicago, 1962; Sculpture Prize, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1962; Creative Arts Award, University of California at Davis, 1968; Purchase Prize, Whitney Museum, New York, 1968; Nealie Sullivan Award, San Francisco Art Institute, 1968; Bartels Prize, 72nd American Exhibition, Art Institute of Chicago, 1976; Traveling Grant to Australia, Australian Arts Council, 1980; Honorary Doctorate at S.F.A.I., San Francisco, California; Honorary Doctorate, S.F.A.I. 1980; Honor and Awards, American Academy of Letters and Arts, New York , New York; 2004 Life Work Award, Marin Arts Council; 2004 Guggenheim Fellowship Award; and the 2005 Lifetime Achievement Award in Printmaking from the Southern Graphics Art Council. - Courtesy of Berggruen Gallery

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