JOHN MOYERS “ECHOES OF THE LAND”

june 15 - JUNe 29, 2019

OPENING RECEPTION June 15, 2-4PM, the artist will be in attendance.

Pricing Available by Request

Inquiries: info@MaxwellAlexanderGallery.com or 213-275-1060

John Moyers grew up in an artistic environment in New Mexico.  Moyers’ father, well-known artist and illustrator, William Moyers, became his first art tutor and set him on an artistic path early in life.  In 1979, after having received an art degree from a prestigious California institute and working in animation, he decided to become a fine artist.  Moyers traveled to the Okanagan Game Farm in British Columbia, which the artist now considers a turning point in his career.  On this journey, after a chance meeting with artist Terri Kelly, who would later become his wife, and the great Robert Lougheed, Moyers decided to stay put in Canada to dig deeper into the traditional painting techniques being taught in the region.  
 
John and Terri spent five years on the game farm, which gave them the ability to see past the abstract painting theories taught in schools at the time, "The experience was exactly what we needed. We had previously attended art school where the emphasis was not on traditional academic studies but on painting abstractly. The time-honored techniques of color and value and working outdoors from life had to be discovered anew at the game farm. Everyone there was united in his or her view of good art," Moyers states.   
 
Opening June 15th, Maxwell Alexander Gallery is pleased to present “Echoes of the Land,” the first Los Angeles exhibition and first solo show for John Moyers in over a decade.  Showcasing nine new works, Moyers handles well-visited subject matter in a way that feels both fresh and contemporary.
 
In “Echoes of the Land,” Moyers’ appears to have come full circle.  The artist, obviously using traditional techniques as his base, pushes past the comfortable representation of portraits and scenes through his use of paint application and unique color theory.  “I love playing around with complementary colors, just really focusing on them, even substituting different hues in where they work best,” he says.  “This is where experimentation is really fun for me because I can dial in all these different colors…I use a high-end color wheel in really unexpected ways.” Moyers paints thoughtful Native American portraits such as The Turquoise and Chinook Winds, and working cowboys in studied motion like in Turbulence.  At first glance, Turbulence can be seen as abstract, but take a step back and the whole scene becomes clear.  His experienced hand produces confident strokes in a loose handling, adding detail only where needed.
 
While experimentation may be a strength of Moyers’ work, it is one that is deeply rooted in experience and tradition both on the canvas, and off.  No stranger to the West, he is an expert in Native American and Mexican weavings and artifacts. Moyers is a previous member and president of the Cowboy Artists of America, where his paintings won numerous awards, including the gold medal in 1997.  Moyers is a frequent participant in the Prix de West Exhibition, where he received the Robert Lougheed award in 2003, The Masters of the American West Fine Art Show and Sale, in 2017 he won the prestigious James R. Parks Purchase Award, and the Quest for the West, where he received the Harrison Eiteljorg Purchase Award, also in 2017.  His paintings can be found in permanent museum collections across the country including The Autry Museum, The Briscoe Western Art Museum, The Eiteljorg Museum, and The Scottsdale Museum of the West, just to name a few. He is a recognizable figure gracing the cover of Western Art Collector and Southwest Art magazines.  After decades in New Mexico, John and his wife, Terri, and their son Josh, all now reside in Southern California. 
 
Moyer’s has carved his career in the Western world on the edge between iconic and exploratory, creating bold imagery with an evocative appeal.  Moyers is continuing to develop and innovate, and as a result he is creating the best work of his career – all of which will be on display in our Downtown LA gallery starting June 15, 2019. 
 
Please join Maxwell Alexander Gallery for the opening of Echoes of the Land, June 15th, 2:00-4:00pm.   The artist will be in attendance.
 
Maxwell Alexander Gallery is located at 406 W. Pico Blvd. LA CA 90015.  213-275-1060.  Street parking is available as well as four paid parking lots that surround the gallery within a block or less.