This month, the Fort Smith Art Center is showing early work by Patrick Angus. The paintings and drawings in the show are all from a period before he painted overtly gay subject matter (the painting above isn’t in the show, obviously–it’s not easy to find many Angus images online), but far enough along to detect the influence of David Hockney, who would eventually become an Angus patron. I walked through the show yesterday, it’s definitely worth seeing. Portraits dominate, but there are some nice interiors, cityscapes, even a landscape or two. Angus had some anxiety in life that his successes as a painter were more due to his later works’ subject matter than his painterly prowess. Based on what I saw at the FSAC, his painting, regardless of subject, is pretty impressive.
[UPDATE: Photos from the exhibition after the jump.]
MW Capacity 
of course, its impossible to not think of that one Hopper painting looking at the Angus above. Sam, would it be possible to post some images from the show? curious to see more
I’ll see what I can do with my camera at the reception tomorrow.
these look interesting.
i was thinking this morning of some enrique martinez celaya paintings. and about till gerhard as well. the color in the above painting puts me in mind of the same sort of world/worlds.
Sam, were you able to get shots of the show?
Will make my attempt at the reception this evening. Results later on tonight, maybe tomorrow…
thanks sam. diggin the cheese grater
I’ve looked all over for images of Angus’ work, ane here I find them in Arkansas! Thanks!
wow! i can see why this guy might stress about publicity. david sedaris once said that it becomes the social obligation of every gay man in america to stand up in front of a crowd of people and announce ‘i like men’. an obligation that heteronormativity releases the fortunate majority of the population from.
thanks for commenting. i think in angus’s case, eastcoast, this situation is poignant, because it seems like he had genuine ambition as a painter, and so the issue of using a kind of loaded subject matter would be incredibly troubling for him. the subject competes with the overall content of his work (also, i get the impression he was prone to be being troubled anyway).
angus dug david hockney, a painter who gets plenty of cred as a painter, regardless of subject, and who has been out for his whole career. though, some would argue, he’s still been somewhat hetero-normalized as he’s received more acclaim.
hi sam thanks for the images , great to see he’s getting recognition he deserves . x
Just discovered Patrick Angus’ work after watching ‘An Englishman in New York’. They’re so good. Perfect depictions of the gay underworld & more. Wish I could see them for real (Im in Australia).
Dear Sam K,
I am the heir of Patrick Angus and the Executor of his Estate and hence the copyright holder of all his work. I have made two books about him and his work: STRIP SHOW: PAINTINGS BY PATRICK ANGUS and PATRICK ANGUS: LOS ANGELES DRAWINGS. I arranged the three exhibitions he had, all in 1992, just before he died. His one fear as he lay dying was that his work would be forgotten, and I have done and do all I can to promote knowledge of him and his work.
Somebody from the Fort Smith Art Center contacted me a couple of years ago, telling me about the proposed exhibition. I was naturally very happy to hear that something was being planned, and was anxious to contribute in any way. However, to my continuing astonishment, ALL MY EFFORTS to reconnect with this person. I were utterly ignored. I was even unable to learn if the exhibition had ever happened, as there is no mention that I can find on the Fort Smith Art website.
A friend of mine, Rev. Robert Stuart, a early supporter of Angus and collector of his work, also tried. NOTHING BUT A VOID. We wonder if some kind of homophobia is at work to protect the good folks of Fort Smith from cognition of who the artist was. Who knows?
Somebody forwarded this to me today, so I hope i can be in touch this way and solve the mystery.
I see in these “replies” you have received that people would like to see more of this work. They would like to know about the books mentioned above. Do you remember if a curator was named?
I hope you can put my curiosity to rest in this matter.
Sincerely, Douglas T.
Hi, it looks like my previous reply is too long. I have written two books about Patrick Angus with two more in the works. I would like to know about this phantom exhibition–there is not mention of it on the Fort Smith Art website and they haven’t answered my queries. Thanks.
Doesn’t anybody know anything about this exhibition in Arkansas?
Please help. We are trying to document Patrick’s shows and the whereabouts of his work.