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call of the wild by
Parks reece
Call of the
Wild is smart, fresh, and funny.
“Think Van Gogh meets The Far Side –
and you might begin to understand
artist Parks Reece.”
Reviews:
“A NATURAL
SURREALIST…In one richly hued,
lushly, even mysteriously textured
painting after another, Reece
seduces the eye and zaps the mind
with such funny and piquant images
as a tiny man running from a giant
spooky, white rooster in “Poultrygeist,”
or, in “Advanced Nymphing,” one of
many underwater fishing scenes, an
impressive trout about to take the
bait: a tiny nude woman. Who is this
adept artist and jokester? Crisply
composed and outright hilarious
essays portray Reece as blithely
eccentric and deeply inspired, prone
to pranks, escapades, accidents and
serendipitous discovery. In Montana
he developed his unique style and
sensibility, and his whimsical yet
shrewd perspective on the complex
relationship between humankind and
the rest of nature. As these
magnetic works hold our attention
with their resplendent beauty and
gentle satire, we slowly recognize
that the power inherent in these
spellbinding depictions of animal
dreams and the perpetual cycle of
life and death is mystical.”
The Chicago Tribune
"An untamed imagination...To take a
walk on the wild side with
alchemical artist Parks Reece is to
tumble down a rabbit hole into a
mystical Montana where grizzlies
fly-fish for humans and luminous
rainbow trout big as 747's soar over
midnight mountains...Invariably, the
tables are turned on us humans in
Reece's painted wilderness. Trained
as a fine artist, he gleefully
dances on a razor's edge between art
and kitsch, tweaking our notions of
reality with wit and beguiling us
with mystery."
Los Angeles Times
“…the Royal Jester of modern Western
art has to be Parks Reece of
Livingston, Montana. The selections
in his book Call of the Wild display
his strengths: his slow burning
witticisms have, cumulatively, a
profound effect, partly because they
slyly subvert the tyranny of the
outdoor landscape. At first, Reece’s
paintings snag the viewer the way
humorous art has since the first
knock-knock hieroglyphics: they make
you smile. …Reece has a deeply
playful mind … The last, though
perhaps most durable, aspect of
Reece’s painting is that the Western
landscape is concretely present but,
at the same time, abstracted. You
become very fond of these vistas,
once-removed, and appreciate just
how closely observed they are. After
a while, the viewer notices that the
Krazy Kritters cavorting in this
landscape are the exact fauna suited
to this eccentric ecology. Then you
stop thinking about the jokes, and
start thinking about Parks Reece as
simply an unsentimental, exquisitely
modern painter of the West."
WBUR, Boston’s NPR News Station
"…A most remarkable showcase of the
warm and often whimsical artwork of
Parks Reece…centered around the
double themes of nature and wry
commentaries or puns…Highly
recommended and uniquely memorable.”
The Midwest Book Review
About the Author/Artist:
parks reece
is an extraordinarily gifted artist
whose distinctive paintings,
lithographs, and prints represent a
complete aesthetic and reflect a sense
of humor that is both original and
great.
Dubbed a "modern mythological
surrealist," Reece fairly bristles at
the label, yet acknowledges that "you
have to have a classification and I seem
to have been lumped in with the
surrealists."
Reece's parodies inject humor into
subjects traditionally considered
oh-so-serious and that has made him a
hero of environmentalists and others who
appreciate the complexities of the human
role in our natural world.
"I would never categorize myself as an
environmental artist, but when the paint
dries I often find that the work is
relevant to environmental issues....I
sort of dabble in modern mythology by
juxtaposing the old myths of the West
with the new things that are going on.
It's part of an ancient tradition--that
of adding levity to gravity."
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