©  Gennie DeWeese, Montana May,  Oil Bar Scroll, 82 x 42 inches, 1999

   Leaning into the Curve
The Art of Gennie DeWeese

Showing at the
Yellowstone Art Museum
February 12 through April 30, 2000

From her home and studio in Cottonwood Canyon south of Bozeman, Gennie DeWeese has been working for years, producing images through observations of the landscape, her community, and its people. Her endeavor has become a mature and masterful presence that reveals reverence for a peaceful natural environment and the landscape of the Gallatin Valley.

The works in this exhibition give a glimpse of her formal background, her love of abstract expressionism and non-objective images, and move into personal abstractions of color, form and landscape. The compositions develop from a solid training in the arts and a heartfelt sensitivity to family, home, environment, and nature. Her vision is in its prime and this exhibit "Leaning Into the Curve" radiates from thoughtful composure of an established artist. 

©  Gennie DeWeese, Tina, (daughter)  Oil on Masonite, 1957

DeWeese says, "My work seems to generally fall into the same category of large scrolls of the Montana landscape with occasional digressions of my Dalmatian dog Pepper, who is so decorative, or crowds of people. I think I've done a few 'good' paintings but it is always the next one that holds the most promise."

The scale of her work led her to the idea of using the scroll instead of stretched canvas as a support. It was ". . . from the practical standpoint of ease of storage but more importantly to introduce the Japanese tradition of ease in changing displays according to seasons, moods or whims. One need not have the same thing in the same spot year in and year out. It allows more personal contact and decisions from the observer."

The title of the exhibition "Leaning into the Curve" is derived from the friendship that she and her husband Bob developed with Robert Persig, Author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. They shared the appreciation of the natural beauty of the area and Persig made many references to them in his book. The exhibition is interspersed with quotes that relate to Gennie's paintings.

©  Gennie DeWeese, March in Montana,  Oil stick on canvas, 1998

"The wind coming down from the snowfields up above sounds for a long time throughout the house. It grows loud and high as if in hope of seeping the whole house, all of us, away into nothing, leaving the canyon as it once was, but the house stands and the wind dies away again, defeated."

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