Work From International Oregon Artist To Be Displayed At Capitol

ACROSS OREGON — From The Oregon Arts Commission: Dayton artist Richard Thompson will exhibit "Paintings from 97114" in the Governor's Office of the Capitol Building in Salem from Dec. 1 to Jan. 31, 2018.

In 2011, following a 30-year academic and professional career in New Mexico, Texas, and New York, Thompson returned to live and paint on what was once his family farm just outside of Dayton, Oregon.

The area of farms and orchards is defined by the zip code 97114, hence the title for this exhibition. The agricultural landscape outside Thompson's studio door — with its spread of fields bounded by forests, clusters of farm buildings reminiscent of still-life elements, distant blue mountains, and vast blowing skies — provides the inspiration and central focus for Thompson's recent works.

Born in Oregon in 1945, Thompson later enrolled at Oregon State University to study forestry, but discovery of the visual arts led to a master's degree in painting and drawing from the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, in 1972.

During the following four decades, Thompson maintained his studio practice as he moved from New Mexico to Texas and then to New York. He taught as a faculty member at the University of Texas, San Antonio, a professor of painting at the University of Texas, Austin from 1984-1997, and as dean and professor at the School of Art and Design, NYS College of Ceramics, Alfred University, from 1997 to 2008.

Thompson has exhibited nationally and internationally at institutions such as the Groniger Museum, The Netherlands; National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian, Washington, DC; and Museum of Fine Art, Houston, Texas. His work has been featured in several major exhibitions including the Whitney Biennial, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, New York; in both 1975 and 1981. His participation in the creative community of the Pacific Northwest in recent years has included selection by curator Amanda Hunt for the Portland2014 Biennial.

Thompson's works can be found in the collections of the Portland Art Museum, the Hallie Ford Museum of Art, Salem; the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, Eugene; and Maryhill Museum, Maryhill, Washington.

The Art in the Governor's Office Program honors selected artists in Oregon with exhibitions in the reception area of the Governor's Office in the State Capitol. Artists are nominated by a statewide committee of arts professionals who consider artists representing the breadth and diversity of artistic practice across Oregon, and are then selected by the Arts Commission with the participation of the Governor's Office.

Only professional, living Oregon artists are considered and an exhibit in the Governor's office is considered a "once in a lifetime" honor.

Artists whose work has previously been shown in the Governor's office include Henk Pander, Michele Russo, Manuel Izquierdo, James Lavadour, Margot Thompson, Gordon Gilkey and Yuji Hiratsuka.

Photo by Richard Thompson; Image via Oregon Arts Commission