Earl Staley: The Machine

Sawyer Yards presents Earl Staley: The Machine, a diverse showcase of the longtime Houston artist’s works on canvas at Sabine Street Studios’ North Gallery.

The artworks chosen for this exhibition are large, densely colorful paintings on canvas that highlight Staley’s variety of approaches to image-making, mark-making, and his range of techniques. Even at this stage in his long career, Staley continues to experiment, attempting new and different ways of building and finishing a work. The paintings all exist somewhere on a wide spectrum of abstraction and pictorial quality, as well as physicality. Though landscapes are evident in his work, no subject is off the table for the artist. For Staley, the most important considerations are that his pictures be “visually delightful, intellectually stimulating, and tell an interesting story.” He further writes:

“I found my voice when I stopped thinking about making art and stared telling my life story.

and “All art must contain love of life and an awareness of death.”

The exhibition is on view through August 31, and is free and open to the public. Join the artist for a reception on Thursday, July 18, from 6-8pm.

Artist Biography:
Earl Staley grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois and resides in Houston, Texas. He is an artist and teacher with more than 60 years of experience. Mr. Staley holds Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Fine Arts degrees. He taught at Washington University in St. Louis, Rice University in Houston, and the University of St. Thomas in Houston, where he was chairperson of the Art Department. Today he teaches in the Fine Art program at Lonestar College in Tomball, TX. Mr. Staley is the recipient of three grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. In 1981 he received the Rome Prize in Painting from the American Academy in Rome, Italy and he resided in Rome for 4 years. Mr. Staley’s paintings look back to his artistic roots and forward to new interpretations of the myths and symbols embedded in his life.