Windsor Utley
Encyclopedia
Windsor Utley was an American musician, artist, teacher and gallery owner, closely associated with the painter Mark Tobey
.
Utley was born in Laguna, California in 1920. He graduated from the Choate School in Connecticut
, and attended Pumona College and the University of Southern California
.
Utley was a classically trained flautist who performed with the Tacoma Symphony in Washington in the early 1940s, and continued to teach and perform throughout his life.
He did not begin painting until he was 19 years old.
During World War II, as a conscientious objector Utley was an inmate of the Cascade Locks, Oregon Civilian Public Service
camp, where he created several paintings and was himself painted by fellow-inmate Kemper Nomland
.
After the war, Utley was accepted into Northwest Annual in 1945 where he met and was greatly influenced by Mark Tobey.
The Smithsonian has a collection of 28 letters and 36 postcards sent to Utley from Mark Tobey and his companion Pehr Hallsten written in 1954 and 1955 while Toby and Hallsten were travelling in Europe.
A handwritten letter from Tobey to Utley dated 1959 is also preserved in the Smithsonian archives of American art.
Utley taught at Helen Bush School of Art, and later became the head of the art department at Cornish College of the Arts
in Seattle.
Windsor Utley has been celebrated as a member of the Northwest School
, but lived at times in California, Washington, New York, Canada, and Italy. He exhibited his paintings throughout the United States and Canada.
Utley moved to Sienna in Italy in 1951 and during his year there was deeply inspired by the art, culture, and architecture. Throughout his life he often returned to Italy for extended stays, painting and exhibiting.
He opened Utley's Art Galleries in Seattle in 1966, then in Victoria, British Columbia in the 1970s. He moved the galleries to Laguna Beach, California in 1983 and re-opened them in Seattle in 1987.
Windsor Utley died in Seattle on 8 April 1989 aged 69.
His work is in many private and public collections including the Seattle Art Museum
, British Columbia Provincial Collection, Victoria, Duveen-Graham Gallery, New York, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
, Richmond and the University of Washington
.
Mark Tobey
Mark George Tobey was an American abstract expressionist painter, born in Centerville, Wisconsin. Widely recognized throughout the United States and Europe, Tobey is the most noted among the "mystical painters of the Northwest." Senior in age and experience, Tobey had a strong influence on the...
.
Utley was born in Laguna, California in 1920. He graduated from the Choate School in Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, and attended Pumona College and the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
.
Utley was a classically trained flautist who performed with the Tacoma Symphony in Washington in the early 1940s, and continued to teach and perform throughout his life.
He did not begin painting until he was 19 years old.
During World War II, as a conscientious objector Utley was an inmate of the Cascade Locks, Oregon Civilian Public Service
Civilian Public Service
The Civilian Public Service provided conscientious objectors in the United States an alternative to military service during World War II...
camp, where he created several paintings and was himself painted by fellow-inmate Kemper Nomland
Kemper Nomland
Kemper Nomland Jr. was a modernist architect in Los Angeles, California and part of a father-son architectural team with his father Kemper Nomland. He was also a painter and printer of poetry and arts publications....
.
After the war, Utley was accepted into Northwest Annual in 1945 where he met and was greatly influenced by Mark Tobey.
The Smithsonian has a collection of 28 letters and 36 postcards sent to Utley from Mark Tobey and his companion Pehr Hallsten written in 1954 and 1955 while Toby and Hallsten were travelling in Europe.
A handwritten letter from Tobey to Utley dated 1959 is also preserved in the Smithsonian archives of American art.
Utley taught at Helen Bush School of Art, and later became the head of the art department at Cornish College of the Arts
Cornish College of the Arts
-Library:The library at Cornish College specializes in art, dance, design, music, performance production, and theatre. As of 2011 it holds 4700 CDs, 40,000 books, has 2,200 videos, and subscribes to 154 periodicals...
in Seattle.
Windsor Utley has been celebrated as a member of the Northwest School
Northwest School (art)
The Northwest School was an art movement based in small-town Skagit County, Washington, and was at its peak in the 1930s and 1940s.-The big four:...
, but lived at times in California, Washington, New York, Canada, and Italy. He exhibited his paintings throughout the United States and Canada.
Utley moved to Sienna in Italy in 1951 and during his year there was deeply inspired by the art, culture, and architecture. Throughout his life he often returned to Italy for extended stays, painting and exhibiting.
He opened Utley's Art Galleries in Seattle in 1966, then in Victoria, British Columbia in the 1970s. He moved the galleries to Laguna Beach, California in 1983 and re-opened them in Seattle in 1987.
Windsor Utley died in Seattle on 8 April 1989 aged 69.
His work is in many private and public collections including the Seattle Art Museum
Seattle Art Museum
The Seattle Art Museum is an art museum located in Seattle, Washington, USA. It maintains three major facilities: its main museum in downtown Seattle; the Seattle Asian Art Museum in Volunteer Park on Capitol Hill, and the Olympic Sculpture Park on the central Seattle waterfront, which opened on...
, British Columbia Provincial Collection, Victoria, Duveen-Graham Gallery, New York, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
The Virginia Museum of Fine arts, or VMFA, is an art museum in Richmond, Virginia, in the United States, which opened in 1936.The museum is owned and operated by the Commonwealth of Virginia, while private donations, endowments, and funds are used for the support of specific programs and all...
, Richmond and the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
.