BRIAN RUTENBERG

Born 1965, South Carolina, Lives and paints in New York,NY

 

 Artist Statement

 

“There is no finer way to practice kindness towards oneself than through the contemplative reverie, luxurious beauty and strange incantatory spell that only art can cast.”  —Brian Rutenberg

 

Inspired by the woods and waters of the Lowcountry and vacation colors of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Brian Rutenberg’s landscape paintings are a place where nature and artifice collide in the bright and combustible—two places he says gave him a love of excess. To ground his abstract vision, vertical marks represent trees, horizontal ovals depict ponds, and slabs of jewel-toned paint sit easily beside pale washes. 

Rutenberg wants the viewer to read his paintings from left to right, as if wandering through the woods versus any fixed vantage point. For him, painting is a rhythmic process, and a successful painting keeps our gaze in perpetual renewal. He offers this example of how it works: when we look through a window on a rainy day, we either see the raindrops on the glass or what lies beyond, but not both views at once. With patience, we begin to take in the whole.  

 

Whereas the paintings are the most obvious aspect of Rutenberg’s creativity, they lay the foundation for what transpires when we take time to contemplate an object outside of ourselves. Rutenberg believes this process causes the artist’s and viewer’s nervous systems to twist around, creating what he calls “the third thing.” He also believes that art is a form of empathy and the ability to extend oneself to that which is outside of oneself will save the world. That’s a wonderful idea to hold onto in these difficult times.

In a turbulent time when the art world is increasingly focused on status, luxury, and investment, Rutenberg’s paintings are a reminder that art is ultimately about aesthetic pleasure and intrinsic qualities. By following their own instinctive taste, eye, and intelligence, those who value this belief bind themselves to the rich history of art and its ongoing appreciation.

 

Education

  1989               MFA, School of Visual Arts, New York, NY

  1987               BFA, College of Charleston, Charleston, SC

 

Solo Exhibitions

 

2023                 TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA 

                         Banners of the Coast, LewAllen Galleries, Santa Fe, NM

                         Banners of the Coast, Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC

2022                 Salon Style, TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA

                         Brian Rutenberg, Hampton III Gallery, Taylors, SC

                         Banners of the Coast, Cotuit Center for the Arts, Cotuit, MA

                         Deeps of Peace, Forum Gallery, NY, NY

2021                  Hinson Art Museum, Wingate University, Monroe, NC

                         Point of Pine, Jerald Mehlburg Gallery, Charlotte, NC

                         Pine, Palm and River, Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center, Birmingham, MI

                         Reeds Rise, LewAllen Galleries, Santa Fe, NM

2020                  The Pond, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

2019                  Brian Rutenberg: Lake, LewAllen Galleries, Santa Fe, NM

2018                  Top of the Hill: New Paintings, Heather Gaudio Fine Art, New Canaan, CT
                         Thunderhead, Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC

                         Looming Pine, Nancy Toomey Fine Art, San Francisco, CA

2017                  Lowcountry: New Paintings, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                         Clear Seeing Place: The Encapsulating Canvases of Brian Rutenberg,
                         Saginaw Art Museum, Saginaw, MI 

                         LewAllen Galleries, Santa Fe, NM   

                         Hoyt Art Center, New Castle, PA    

                         Tew Galleries, Atlanta, GA     

2016                  Clear Seeing Place, Bannister Gallery, Rhode Island College, Providence, RI

                         Scallop Pond, New Paintings, Peter Marcelle Project, Southampton, NY

2015                  TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA

2014                  Saltwater, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                         Paintings by Brian Rutenberg, Cotuit Center for the Arts, Cotuit, MA

2012                  River, Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC Toomey-Tourell Gallery, San Francisco, CA

2011                  TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA

                         Brian Rutenberg: Paintings and Drawings, Franklin G. Burroughs-
                         Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum, Myrtle Beach, SC

                         I Will Tell You A Place: Paintings by Brian Rutenberg,
                         The Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, GA

                         Low Dense, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

2009                  Gibbes Museum of Art, Charleston, SC 

                          Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC

                          TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA

2008                   Palmetto, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                          Toomey-Tourell Gallery, San Francisco, CA
                          Hickory Museum of Art, Hickory, NC,

                          Galerie Timothy Tew, Atlanta, GA

2006                   Toomey-Tourell Gallery, San Francisco, CA

                          South Carolina State Museum, Columbia, SC 

                          Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC

                          David Lusk Gallery, Memphis, TN

2005                   Carolina, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

2004                   Cress Gallery of Art, University of Tennessee-Chattanooga, TN

                          Toomey-Tourell Gallery, San Francisco, CA

                          Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, CA

2003                   John Raimondi Gallery, Vitale, Caturano & Co., Boston, MA             

                          Recent Landscape Paintings, Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC

2002                   Algonquin, Forum Gallery, Los Angeles, CA

                          Tippy-Stern Fine Art, Charleston, SC

                          Artists to Artists, The Marie Walsh Sharpe Art Foundation, Colorado Springs, CO

2001                   A Ten-Year Survey, Butler Institute of American Art, Warren, OH 

                          Hidell-Brooks Gallery, Charlotte, NC

2000                   Temple Bar Gallery, Dublin, Ireland

                          Tippy-Stern Fine Art, Charleston, SC

                           Schmidt-Dean Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

                          Toomey-Tourell Gallery, San Francisco, CA

1999                   Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Gallery, Toronto, Canada                                        

                           Hidell-Brooks Gallery, Charlotte, NC

1998                    Burroughs-Chapin Museum of Art, Myrtle Beach, SC

                           University of South Carolina-Beaufort, SC

                           Fine Arts Center of Camden County, Camden, SC

                           Wells Gallery, Charleston, SC

1997                    Schmidt/Dean Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

1996                    Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY

                           Halsey Gallery, College of Charleston, SC                                 

                           National Library of Canada, Glenn Gould Exhibition Website, Ottawa

1995                    Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY

                           Cameron Art Museum, Wilmington, NC 

1994                    David Klein Gallery, Birmingham, MI

                           Fridholm Gallery, Asheville, NC

1993                    Stephen Wirtz Gallery, San Francisco, CA

                           Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY

                           Greenville County Museum of Art, Greenville, SC

                           Fridholm Gallery, Asheville, NC

1992                    Fridholm Gallery, Asheville, NC

1989                    Francis Marion College Art Gallery, Florence, SC

 

Group Exhibitions

 

2022-23               Quarter Past: Highlights from our Collection, Franklin G. Burroughs-Simeon B.

                           Chapin Art Museum, Myrtle Beach, SC

2022                    The Modern Landscape, Danville Village Theatre Art Gallery, Danville, CA

                           Alice Ballard and Brian Rutenberg, Myrtle Beach Art Museum, Myrtle Beach Art

                           Museum, Myrtle Beach, SC

2021                    Drawing Inspiration, Forum Gallery, NY, NY

                            In Vivid Color: Pushing the Boundaries of Perception in Contemporary Art,
                            Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, NC

2020                     First Impressions: New Works and New Acquisitions, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

2019                     Person to Person, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                            Bordering on Abstraction, Franklin G. Burroughs-Simeon B. Chapin
                            Art Museum, Myrtle Beach, SC

                            Linden Frederick & Seven Contemporary Guest Artists, Haynes Galleries, Franklin, TN
                            Natural History, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

2018                     Long Island Painters, MM Fine Art Advisory & Appraisals, Southampton, NY

2018                     Augusta Collects Southern Art, Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, GA

2017-18                Artists by Artists: The Artist as Subject, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

2017-18                Eclipsing 50, Artists from the South Carolina Arts Commission Collection, 1967-2017,
                            South Carolina State Museum, Columbia, SC

                            Favorite Things: A Holiday Exhibition, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

2017                     Forum Gallery Celebrates 55 Years of Modern and Contemporary Art,Forum Gallery, NY, NY

                            Greenville County Museum of Art, Greenville, SC
                            92nd St. Y Art Center, New York, NY

                            American Views, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                            20/21 VISIONARY ARTISTS OF THE 21ST CENTURY, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

2015                     Nature Unbound, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                            Timothy Tew Gallery, Atlanta, GA 

2014                     46th Collector’s Show and Sale, Arkansas Arts Center, Little Rock, AR

2013                     Singular Vision, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                            W.O.P, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                            45th Annual Collector’s Show & Sale, Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR

                            Rebekah Jacob Gallery, Charleston, SC

                            Room with a View, Selections from the Permanent Collection, Burroughs-
                            Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum, Myrtle Beach,South Carolina

                            Dark Eye Glances: Romantic Impulse in Landscape, Stedman Gallery at Rutgers
                            Camden Center for the Arts, Camden,NJ

2012                     Five Decades: Art and Artists of Forum Gallery: 1962-2012, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                            Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL

                            State Museum of South Carolina, Columbia, SC

                            43rd Collectors Show & Sale, Arkansas Arts Center, Little Rock, AR Vantage Point
                            Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                            Private Beauty, Martin County Courthouse Cultural Center, Stuart, FL

2010                     Contemporary Paintings, Drawings & Sculpture: A Summer Selection,
                            Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                            Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC

                            Toomey-Tourell Gallery, San Francisco, CA

                            TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA

    2009                 Summer Selections, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                            South Carolina Selections: Ideas Distanced from Objects,
                            Greenville County Museum of Art, Greenville, SC

                            Abstraction in the South, Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, GA

                            25/25, Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC

2008                     New Acquisitions, Forum Gallery, New York, NY  

2007                     The Contemporary Landscapes Show, Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                            TEW Galleries, Atlanta, GA

2006                      Invitational Exhibition of Contemporary American Art, National Academy Museum, New York, NY
                             Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC

                             Eva Carter Gallery, Charleston, SC

                            Toomey-Tourell Gallery, San Francisco, CA

                            75th Anniversary Exhibition, Weill Art Gallery, 92nd Street Y, New York, NY

2005                     John Raimondi Gallery, Boston, MA

                            Gibbes Museum of Art, Charleston, SC

                            Burroughs-Chapin Museum of Art, Myrtle Beach, SC

                            Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC

                            Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, MA

2004                    Transamerica Corporation Gallery, San Francisco, CA

                           Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                           Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC

                           Albright Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, NY

                           Toomey-Tourell Gallery, San Francisco, CA

                           Springfield Museum of Art, Springfield, OH

                           Burroughs-Chapin Museum of Art, Myrtle Beach, SC

                           Gibbes Museum of Art, Charleston, SC

                           Museum of Art and History, Santa Cruz, CA

                           Terra Gallery, San Francisco, CA

2003                    Ace Gallery, New York, NY

                           Callen McJunkin Gallery, Charleston, WV

                           Toomey-Tourell Gallery, San Francisco, CA

                           Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC
 2002                   Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                           Albright Knox Museum, Buffalo, NY
                           Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                           Tippy-Stern Gallery, Charleston, SC

                           Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, Boulder, CO

2002                    Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC        

                           Hidell-Brooks Gallery, Charlotte, NC

2001                    Forum Gallery, New York, NY

                           Tippy-Stern Gallery, Charleston, SC

                           Greenville County Museum of Art, Greenville, SC

                           Toomey-Tourell Gallery, San Francisco, CA

2000                    Gibbes Museum of Art, Charleston, SC

                           Hidell-Brooks Gallery, Charlotte, NC

                           Tippy-Stern Fine Art, Charleston, SC
                           Schmidt-Dean Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

                           Toomey-Tourell Gallery, San Francisco, Ca

1999                    The Painting Center, New York, NY

                           Schmidt-Dean Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

                           Toomey-Tourell Gallery, San Francisco, CA
 1998                   Vancouver Museum, Vancouver, B.C.

                           Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY

                           McAllen Art Museum. McAllen, TX

                           Hidell/ Brooks Gallery, Charlotte, NC

1997                    Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery, Los Angeles, CA

                           Oakland Museum of Art, Oakland, CA

                           American Academy of Arts & Letters Invitational, New York, NY

                           Radix Gallery, New York, NY

1996                   Janet Fleisher Gallery, Philadelphia, PA    

                          Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY      

                          Art Initiatives, New York, NY

                          Contemporary Art from the Permanent Collection, Gibbes Museum of Art,Charleston, SC 

1995                   Albright Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, NY

                          Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY

                          Artists from the Permanent Collection, Greenville County Museum of Art,Greenville, SC          

1994                   Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY

                          Gibbes Museum of Art, Charleston, SC

                          808 Penn Modern Gallery, Pittsburgh, PA

1993                   Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY

                          Lee Arthur Studio, New York, NY

                          Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY

                          Abstraction Per Se, Pratt Institute Manhattan, NY 

                          Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY

                          University of Pittsburgh Gallery, Pittsburgh, PA
                          Fridholm Fine Arts, Asheville, NC

1992                   Dean Velentgas Gallery, Portland. ME

                          Cameron Art Museum, Wilmington, NC

                          Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY

1991                   Stephen Wirtz Gallery, San Francisco, CA

                          Janet Fleisher Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

                          Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY

                           Piccolo Spoleto Festival, City Gallery, Charleston, SC 

1990                   Biennial Exhibition, Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, NC 

                           Foreman Gallery, Hartwick College, Oneonta, NY

                           Washington Square Art Gallery, New York, NY

                           Halsey Gallery, College of Charleston, SC

                           Bill Bace Gallery, New York, NY

1989 – 88            Visual Arts Gallery, New York, NY (multiple exhibitions)

                           City Gallery, Charleston, SC Piccolo Spoleto

1987                    Halsey Gallery, College of Charleston, Charleston, SC

                           City Gallery, Charleston, SC Piccolo Spoleto

                           Visual Arts Gallery, New York, NY (curator: Will Insley)

1986                    Beyond Rainbow Row, Charleston County Library, SC 

                           Halsey Gallery, College of Charleston, SC

                           Lenexa Art Center, Lenexa, KS

                           Piccolo Spoleto, City Gallery, Charleston, SC 

1985                    Gibbes Museum of Art, Charleston, SC

 

 

Publications

 

A Little Long Time, Forum Gallery, New York, NY, 2020

Selections from The Morris Museum of Art: Spring Tide, Morris Museum of Art, Augusta GA, 2019

Clear Seeing Place: Studio Visits, New York: Permanent Green, 2016

Clear Seeing Place, LewAllen Gallery, Santa Fe, NM, 2017 

Camellia, Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC, 2016 

Saltwater, Forum Gallery, New York, NY, 2014

Brimming Tide, Burroughs-Chapin Art Museum, Myrtle Beach, SC, 2011

Palmetto, Forum Gallery, New York, NY, 2008

Riverbend, Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC, 2006

Brimming Tides, South Carolina State Museum, Columbia, SC, 2006

Carolina, Forum Gallery, New York, NY, 2005

Where Waters Rest, Jerald Melberg Gallery, Charlotte, NC, 2004

Algonquin, Forum Gallery, Los Angeles, CA, 2002

A Ten Year Survey, Butler Institute of American Art, Warren, Ohio, 2001

The Cavan Paintings, Temple Bar Gallery, Dublin, Ireland, 2000

River Paintings, Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY
and Stephen Wirtz Gallery, San Francisco, CA, 1993

 

Awards

 

2018                 Commencement Speaker & Honorary Doctorate, College of Charleston, SC

2004                 Fellowship in Painting, New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA)

2002                 Spring Island Trust Award

2000                 Peter S. Reed Foundation Award

                        Sea Island Trust Visiting Artist

1997                 Fulbright Scholarship

                        Artists Work Programme Studio Grant, Irish Museum of Modern Art

1993                 Marie Walsh Sharpe Art Foundation

1991                 Basil Alkazzi Award USA

                        Ragdale Foundation Fellowship

1988                 MFA Scholarship Award, School of Visual Arts

1987                 Laura Bragg Memorial Award

 

Lectures and Mini Classes

 

2018               “Clear Seeing Place – With Brian Rutenberg & Friends of the Mint,” Mint Museum Randolph, Charlotte, NC  

2017                Mastering Your Mark 2017 Conference: Lunchtime Keynote - Brian Rutenberg “I Am Where I Go”, Cape Cod Art Association,

                        Resort and Conference Center at Hyannis, Hyannis, MA

                       “Meet the Maker: Brian Rutenberg”, Halsey Institute for Contemporary Art, Charleston, SC

                         Franklin G. Burroughs-Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum, Myrtle Beach, SC  

                        Clear Seeing Place Book Reading, 92nd Street Y Art Center, New York, NY

 

Museum and Public Collections

Asheville Museum of Art, Asheville, NC

Bank of America, San Francisco, CA

Boca Raton Museum of Art, Boca Raton, FL

Bronx Museum of Art

Burroughs-Chapin Museum of Art, Myrtle Beach, SC 

Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, OH

Cameron Art Museum, Wilmington, NC

Carolina First Bank, Greenville, SC

College of Charleston Foundation, SC 

The Colony Group, Boston, MA

Comcast Corporation, Philadelphia, PA

Dayton Art Institute, Dayton, OH

Dow Jones & Co., New York, NY

Drive Time, Tempe, AZ

Federal Reserve Bank, Richmond, VA 

First National Bank of Chicago, Detroit, MI 

Gibbes Museum of Art, Charleston, SC

Greenville County Museum of Art, Greenville, SC

Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art at Cornell University, Ithaca, NY

Hickory Museum of Art, Hickory, NC

Hoyt Art Center, New Castle, PA

Hunter Museum of American Art, Chattanooga, TN

The Johnson Collection, Spartanburg, SC

McGladrey, Charlestown, MA

MGM Resorts International

Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, GA

Naples Art Museum, Naples, FL

Nassau County Museum of Art, Roslyn Harbor, NY

Ogden Museum of Art, New Orleans, LA

The Ozer Group, Needham, MA

Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, MA

Provincetown Art Association and Museum, Provincetown, MA 

Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, CA

Saginaw Art Museum, Saginaw, MI

Saks Fifth Avenue, San Francisco, CA

Showboat Casino, Inc., Atlantic City, NJ 

Springfield Museum of Art, Springfield, OH 

Spring Island Trust, Spring Island, SC

South Carolina Arts Commission State Art Collection 

Stoneridge Corporation, Warren, OH

Strategic Search Inc., Charlotte, NC

Swiss Re Corporation, New York, NY

University of Arkansas Hospital for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR

Wilmington Trust Co., New York, NY

Yale University Gallery of Art, New Haven, CT