Bateman’s Art Goes Where the Wild Things Are
By Dane Stickney, Omaha World-Herald, Neb.
Nov. 22–Robert Bateman is an internationally acclaimed painter and one of the Canada’s most successful artists.
But when he comes to Omaha later this month, he’ll be just an average tourist.
“I can’t wait to visit the zoo,” he said. “I love your zoo. It’s such a great place.”
Bateman’s affinity for Henry Doorly Zoo is tied to his artistic style. He is one of the world’s most acclaimed wildlife artists. Selections from the 77-year-old’s long and varied career will be on display at Joslyn Art Museum beginning Saturday.
The exhibit — “The Art of Robert Bateman” — marks the artist’s first Omaha appearance since 1987, when his solo show at the Joslyn brought in nearly 27,000 visitors during its 41-day run.
“There is a huge audience in this area for this type of art,” said John Wilson, the Joslyn’s director of curatorial affairs. “And Bateman certainly does this style better than most.”
Bateman is infatuated with realism, rendering bears, birds and branches in extreme realistic detail. His work has deeper layers, too. Bateman evolved from an impressionistic and abstract background to his current style, and he often embeds environmental messages in his paintings.
But the realism reels in people.
He has packed galleries from Washington, D.C., to his native Canada with his straightforward, honest renderings of the natural world.
The Joslyn will try to place Bateman’s wildlife art in a historical context, hanging a companion exhibit featuring the 1830s paintings of Karl Bodmer. The display — “Karl Bodmer’s Animals” — features the artist’s documentation of the landscapes and animals he encountered on an exhibition of the West with German explorer Prince Maximilian of Wied.
Comparing the Bodmer paintings — which are the crown jewels of the Joslyn’s permanent collection — with Bateman’s is somewhat natural but also a stretch of sorts, Wilson said. Bodmer’s work is essentially scientific and historical documentation done in an artistic way. Bateman’s paintings are strictly art that happens to catch natural subjects.
The comparison certainly doesn’t offend Bateman.
“Bodmer was a very accomplished watercolorist and observer,” Bateman said. “It’s an honor to be hanging under the same roof as his work.”
Having a museum with that kind of high-quality permanent collection supports what Bateman tells people about Omaha.
“It’s an incredibly underrated American city,” he said. “It’s always a treat for me to come to Omaha.”
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Copyright (c) 2007, Omaha World-Herald, Neb.
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