This exhibition marks the start of the partnership of Heather James Fine Art with the Crocker Museum as representatives of the estate of Paul Wonner and William Theophilus Brown. An artist couple, Wonner and Brown were aligned with the Bay Area Figurative movement emerging in the 1950s. Emphasized in the exhibition is their use of models which played a central role in their process. The figures, dominant, thoughtful, and sensual, provide insight into their artistic vision. In the striking works of Paul Wonner and Theophilus Brown, lies a modernity rooted in integration – the balance between abstraction and figuration, a grappling with art history against a search for an individual voice. This exhibition of bright and energetic works covering four decades captures the range of their modern spirit and the deep bond between them.
The Crocker has established the Paul Wonner and William Theophilus Brown Endowment Fund which will support museum projects relating to emerging artists and LGBTQI artists in accordance with the artists’ wishes. Heather James is proud to support the endowment fund in representing the estate of Wonner and Brown.