(WEST BEND, WISCONSIN) – Museum of Wisconsin Art is honored to announce the opening of Art Gebhardt: A Painter’s Painter, an exhibition that celebrates the life and work of the artist. A successful businessman, philanthropist, and artist, Arthur “Art” Gebhardt (1928–2022) generated countless paintings over the span of six decades: portraits of friends and family members, café scenes, interiors of pool halls, circuses with swinging trapeze artists, and images of surreal imagination. Art Gebhardt: A Painter’s Painter assembles more than a dozen paintings from the homes of family members and friends in an effort to give Gebhardt the long overdue recognition he deserves. The exhibition is on view November 23–February 23.
Gebhardt was a graduate of the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he earned a fine arts degree. His early works show the influence of former teacher Robert Grilley and contemporary Wisconsin artists Fred Berman, Joe Friebert, and Leon Travanti. As Gebhardt’s work evolved, he also drew inspiration from French Impressionists Edgar Degas and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. “Although Gebhardt made his living from the tanning business, his true love was painting,” said Senior Curator, Graeme Reid. “This passion remained with him throughout his entire life.”
“The Gebhardt family has maintained a meaningful relationship with MOWA over the years—we are thrilled to exhibit this previously private work with the public,” said Jane L. Aspinwall, MOWA’s Deputy Director.
Gebhardt always had a working easel set up in his home for visitors and family members who posed regularly as models. Despite his deep commitment to the painter’s practice, he never sold a single painting during his life, preferring instead to give them way to friends or relatives. For Gebhardt, painting was pure joy and he delighted in sharing his private work with others as an expression of friendship.
Join MOWA for A Painter’s Painter, and discover the remarkable legacy of Art Gebhardt—a life dedicated to art, community, and creativity.
Image Credit: Art Gebhardt, Sleeping Lady, 2009
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