Blog

12 03, 2021

The Prairie Ocean

2021-08-11T17:28:52-05:00March 12th, 2021|0 Comments

*The following is researched and written by Dr. Mark Thistlethwaite, retired Kay and Velma Kimbell Chair of Art History TCU School of Art* Seeing a work of art “in a different light,” as the apt title of the Sid Richardson Museum’s Winslow Homer-Frederic Remington exhibition suggests, really can change the way we perceive it. This was brought home to me when I came upon the museum’s great painting The Buffalo Runners–Big Horn Basin (1909) in the Amon Carter Museum of American Art’s recent exhibition Mythmakers: The Art of Winslow Homer and Frederic Remington. This dynamic Remington composition was installed adjacent [...]

17 02, 2021

Art for the Masses

2021-08-11T17:36:56-05:00February 17th, 2021|0 Comments

As mentioned in a previous blog post, one of the similarities between Frederic Remington and Winslow Homer as demonstrated through our current exhibit, In a Different Light: Winslow Homer & Frederic Remington, is that both artists made their start as illustrators capturing the imagination of the American public through their creation of popular images in publications such as Harper’s Weekly, Collier’s, and Scribner’s Monthly. Cover of Collier’s Magazine with art by Frederic Remington, March 18, 1905, Public Domain How did they disseminate their illustrations on such a large scale? Through the process of printmaking. What is printmaking? Printmaking [...]

13 01, 2021

Illustrating Disillusions of War

2021-08-11T17:38:15-05:00January 13th, 2021|2 Comments

Our current exhibit, In A Different Light: Winslow Homer & Frederic Remington, explores some of the comparisons in the careers of these two iconic American artists. One of those parallels is that both Homer & Remington served as artist war correspondents: Homer in the Civil War and Remington in the Indian Wars in the Southwest and the Spanish American War in Cuba. The exposure to the realities of war made a lasting impression on both men. At the outset of the Civil War, Harper’s dispatched Homer to the frontlines in Virginia in 1861 to capture life on the battlefield. On [...]

16 12, 2020

A Cowboy Christmas

2021-03-23T20:17:16-05:00December 16th, 2020|2 Comments

One aspect of our current exhibit In A Different Light: Winslow Homer & Frederic Remington, is the examination of the illustration career of both artists as a defining element of their success among the American public. On display is a great example of how Remington’s art was disseminated in printed form with a copy of the December 21, 1889 issue of Harper’s Weekly. Here we have a boisterous group of cowboys in revelry during the beloved Christmas holiday. “Cow-Boys Coming to Town for Christmas” | Frederic Remington (1861-1909) | 1889 | Wood Block and Magazine Print | Sid Richardson [...]

18 11, 2020

Will the Cable Hold?

2021-03-23T20:10:58-05:00November 18th, 2020|0 Comments

Our current exhibit, In a Different Light: Winslow Homer & Frederic Remington, includes some artworks by Homer that focus on his seaside imagery. Homer often created scenes focusing on the forces of nature and dangers of the turbulent sea. Some artworks may include women looking anxiously out at sea, as in his 1888 etching Perils of the Sea, available to view through our virtual tour. Some artworks include scenes of near-drowned women, as in this 1887 etching The Life Line. Both prints are part of a group of etchings that Homer produced in the 1880s that closely followed his painted compositions. In The Life [...]

21 10, 2020

Nobody Can Soldier Without Coffee

2021-05-11T17:07:30-05:00October 21st, 2020|4 Comments

One of the similarities between Frederic Remington and Winslow Homer as demonstrated through our current exhibit, In a Different Light: Winslow Homer & Frederic Remington, is that both artists made their start as illustrators working for the popular magazines of the period (Harper’s Weekly, Scribner’s Monthly, etc). One of their key assignments was as war correspondents. Remington focused on the American Indian Wars in the Southwest and later the Spanish American War in Cuba. Being from an earlier generation, Homer focused on the American Civil War. In 1863, Homer partnered with Boston publisher Louis Prang (who is sometimes referred to as the “father of the American Christmas card”) in a [...]

16 09, 2020

A Museum Transformation

2021-08-11T17:40:40-05:00September 16th, 2020|1 Comment

If you’ve walked by the museum lately, you may have noticed some changes. The front space of our institution has transformed many times since the museum first opened to the public in 1982. Interior of Museum Store, 1982 Museum Store interior, post 2006 renovation Museum Front Gallery, 2020 Museum Front Gallery, 2020 The museum store was leased and operated by local business owner Chris Gensheimer. Given the economic impact on downtown and with the suspension of convention traffic, the decision was made that for the time being retail at The Sid was [...]

19 08, 2020

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Cullercoats Fishergirls

2021-08-11T17:48:59-05:00August 19th, 2020|1 Comment

One of the themes of our current exhibition In a Different Light: Winslow Homer & Frederic Remington, is the exploration of both artists’ practice of repeating character types throughout their career. The exhibit includes a rotation of works on paper by Homer. One of the rotations features two works inspired by Homer’s visit to Cullercoats, England - Perils of the Sea (1888) and Scotch Mist (1883). Examination of the two artworks reveals Homer’s practice of reusing groupings of figures while reducing compositions to their essential story-telling elements.   Perils of the Sea | Winslow Homer | 1888 | Etching | Amon Carter Museum of American Art | 1983.58 Scotch Mist | Winslow Homer (1836-1910) | 1883 [...]

10 07, 2020

Destination Seaside

2021-08-11T17:52:47-05:00July 10th, 2020|1 Comment

Our current exhibit, In a Different Light: Winslow Homer & Frederic Remington, features a large 1882 painting by Homer titled Two Figures by the Sea. Winslow Homer (1836-1910) | Two Figures by the Sea | 1882 | Oil on canvas | Denver Art Museum | 1935.8 This sparse composition avoids direct narrative, but simply implies the consternation of the two huddled women staring out for sign of a ship in stormy waters. One of Homer’s early dramatic confrontations between man and the sea, this painting was created during the artist’s time spent in Cullercoats, England. Cullercoats, England Homer had originally travelled to [...]

17 06, 2020

SRM Art Collection Road Trip

2021-08-11T17:58:23-05:00June 17th, 2020|0 Comments

During our trip down memory lane last month, we revisited the history of the museum and how it first opened its doors back in 1982. We shared that Sid began collecting in 1942 until his death in 1959. So where did the paintings hang before the museum was founded? Well, in addition to being temporarily housed at the Amon Carter Museum starting in 1975, many artworks from Sid’s collection travelled the world on loan to various exhibitions. Let’s follow the journey some paintings have made to the many institutions and special exhibits our collection has been displayed. National Cowboy [...]