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Richard Wilson Tyler
Kachemak Bay, Alaskan Landscape by R.W. "Toby" Tyler

2007

About the Item

R.W. "Toby" Tyler (American, 1927-2015) February on Kachemak Bay, 2007 Acrylic and mixed media on board 9 x 22 3/4 in. Framed: 10 5/8 x 24 3/4 x 3/4 in. Signed and dated lower right Richard Wilson Tyler was called "Toby" after the book character. He had painted since the 1950s and his focus was generally nature and his surroundings. From an Ebay, undated, review on an exhibition, it was written that "Longtime Homer artist R.W. “Toby” Tyler’s new show at Ptarmigan Arts lives up to its name, “Surprises from Toby’s Attic.” The retrospective show does exactly that: displays works found in Tyler’s attic, from pen-and-ink and watercolor drawings of San Francisco Victorian houses to his series of prints showing the progression of Alaska plants over and within the seasons. “I had no idea what they would find. Neither did they,” Tyler said of the friends who climbed up into his attic. “It was a whole bunch of odds and ends.” The real surprise comes in a collection of seven small paintings, all recent works done since December and while Tyler, 88, has been recovering from a stroke he suffered in late 2014. Now living at Friendship Terrace, the assisted living home run by Homer Senior Citizens, the renaissance of Tyler’s art has come about through his own perseverance and the support of Ptarmigan Arts, the Center of Alaskan Coastal Studies and the Homer arts community. “That was the goal: to get him painting again,” said Debbie Fanatia, former chair of the Ptarmigan Arts Back Room Gallery and the show organizer. “It was such a community effort and everybody was so excited to help. It really was fun to watch and be part of. He’s such a treasure.” Tyler said he woke up one morning at his home near East End Road feeling confused. He couldn’t see anything and didn’t know where he was. A friend found him later and got him to South Peninsula Hospital. He would spend several months in the hospital recovering enough from his stroke that he could live in assisted living. The stroke affected his left side. He has trouble moving his left foot and leg. As an artist, one challenge has been reduced vision, what’s called “left neglect.” Wiggling the fingers on his left hand, Tyler illustrates the cognitive defect. He can’t see those fingers, he said. Move a pen across his field of vision, and his brain doesn’t see it until the pen comes in front of his nose. At dinner, aides have to turn his plate so he sees what else he has to eat. The stroke also affected his fine motor control. Tyler tried to sketch or do watercolor paintings, but that didn’t work. One day he saw a puzzle a friend, John Mouw, had sent off to be made from a 1957 oil painting of Tyler’s, “Grewingk Glacier and Cabin,” of the old Fred Cowgill cabin at the bottom of East Hill Road. That painting was done using the palette knife technique, painting in oils with the small, trowel-like knife instead of a brush. “He decided he may be able to paint with a palette knife,” Fanatia said of Tyler. “He told me he wanted to start painting with the palette knife, and if he did that, he would have a show.” Tyler has been a longtime member of Ptarmigan Arts, the artists co-operative started by Sharon McKemie Bauer in 1984. McKemie Bauer sold the gallery to Karen “Jewels” East in 2003, and Ptarmigan Arts is now run by a group of member artists. If Tyler was going to paint, he couldn’t do it at Friendship Terrace because of the fumes from oil paints. Fanatia talked to another Ptarmigan Arts member, Kathy Drew. Tyler has been a member and supporter of the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies for more than 30 years, so Drew approached CACS to see if Tyler could set up a studio there. Outreach and marketing director Melanie Dufour didn’t even hesitate, Fanatia said. They set up a studio in a back room. Bio sourced from the Archives of AskArt.
  • Creator:
    Richard Wilson Tyler (1927 - 2015, American)
  • Creation Year:
    2007
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 10.625 in (26.99 cm)Width: 24.75 in (62.87 cm)Depth: 0.75 in (1.91 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    Larchmont, NY
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: U21stDibs: LU2211213722162
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