Alden Mason: Fly Your Own Thing is the first comprehensive museum exhibition for Northwest artist Alden Mason since his passing in 2013. Mason was a prolific painter whose exuberance and inventiveness in form, color, and style helped pave the way from the aesthetics of the Northwest School to midcentury modernist art in the Pacific Northwest.
Born in Everett, WA in 1919, Mason earned his MFA from the University of Washington in 1947, launching what would become an extraordinarily long career as both an artist and teacher. He reinvented his style several times over the course of his career, exploring and combining new techniques through his Burpee Garden series, Squeeze Bottle paintings, Big Heads, and later acrylic works. Mason traveled extensively throughout his career, yet always returned to the Northwest and the Skagit Valley, drawing inspiration from every aspect of his life and the landscape around him.
While Mason’s visionary artworks helped shape the future of Northwest art, his work in the classroom inspired the next generation of artists in the region. Notable students include Roger Shimomura, Gene Gentry McMahon, and Chuck Close, who called Mason, “The greatest painter to come out of the Pacific Northwest—for me, even greater than Mark Tobey or Morris Graves.”
Alden Mason: Fly Your Own Thing is presented to coincide with the first comprehensive monograph on the artist, to be published by the University of Washington.
After our lunch at the MIG Cart, J.E., Ellen and I went to the Friends of the Salem Public Library store where Ellen found a big box of old postcards for sale at $0.10 apiece. So J.E. and I left her there and made a quick trip to the Hallie Ford Museum! There was a Dale Chihuly blown glass exhibit going on, but I was more interested in the other, more permanent exhibits. I always love going there. Then J.E. and I went back to get Ellen, and we went back to J.E.'s house. We rested a bit, had a light supper, talked until dark and went to bed. Friday morning, Bonnie and Roger came for coffee and muffins that J.E. made, and we talked until 11:30a.m. or so, when Ellen and I took off for Boise. I forgot my pill case and had to go back for that.
I am so fortunate to have Bonnie, Roger, and J.E. as friends, through Ellen, who first met them three decades ago (or so) when she lived in Salem, and I feel particularly fortunate to have been able to make this trip and reconnect with them after the pandemic put a halt to such travel.
We stopped at Rosie's in Mill City for scones and coffee (a favorite stop), took note of the devastation caused by wildfires last September along the Santiam Highway around Detroit, OR, had to deal with something under the car that suddenly was dragging on the road (fixed that with good old duct tape) and made it back to Boise pretty late - around 11p.m. - but it was still dusk! We talked with Susan and Christian Saturday morning, left around noon, had a nice drive back to Alpine and got here around 8p.m. last evening. As with our Salem friends, it was lovely re-connecting with Susan and Christian, and we got to see all the amazing work Christian has done on their house as he meticulously re-furbishes it, employing his wood-working skills to a high degree. That is on hold this summer as they both enjoy going to music festivals and visiting family and friends. We managed to catch them at home, and also managed to miss the big heat wave this weekend when both Salem and Boise will suffer temps above 100 degrees.
We'll be here till Tuesday and then start the journey home.
Here are a few selected items from the Hallie Ford Museum collection:
This little sampling provides a good sense of the diversity of works the Hallie Ford offers.
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| Rosie's Coffee House in Mill City, OR, which fortunately escaped damage from wildfires last summer |
those hiugs and kisses were worth so much. xxxooo
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