STEPHENVILLE (May 2, 2016) — The Clyde H. Wells Fine Arts Center Gallery of Art presents a special exhibition—“Friends for Forty”—and reception honoring the career and work of Assistant Professor Mark Davis, who will retire after 45 years of service to Tarleton State University.
Friends for Forty is a collaborative exhibition of Davis’ work along with that of Dublin, Texas-based painter Bob Stuth-Wade. The exhibit kicks off with a reception from 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, May 4, in the Gallery Alcove of the Fine Arts Center and runs through May 11. The reception doubles as a retirement party for Davis. There is no charge, and the public is invited.
In 1986, Davis spearheaded the creation of Tarleton’s art program. Later, he wrote the curriculum for the bachelor’s degree program in studio art. He has taught painting and drawing to generations of students. In 2007, he received the O.A. Grant Excellence in Teaching Award.
Davis and Stuth-Wade have been friends for as long as Davis has been at Tarleton. Stuth-Wade approached him with the idea of doing an exhibition together at the end of the semester and, through those conversations, came the idea for “Friends for Forty.”
The exhibition showcases recent work by both artists, who maintain active studios. Davis’ paintings include compositions that combine flat and two-dimensional shapes with images and iconography inspired by Western themes. His work is included in the collections of numerous individuals and businesses across the state and nation. He received a bachelor’s degree in art at the University of Colorado in Boulder and a master’s in art at North Texas State University.
Stuth-Wade’s work includes expressive representational portraits and landscapes, exhibited across Texas. Recent solo exhibitions took place at the San Angelo Museum of Art, the Grace Museum in Abilene and the Dallas Art Fair. In 2011, he served as a visiting professor at Baylor University.
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