Acrylic Paint

Gorgeous red, cream and blue architecturally inspired abstract acrylic painting by Dan Stewart in 1967.

Dan R. Stewart was born in 1926 and examined the world around him as both artist and architect. While his ultimate goal was to become an architect, he always sought to weave a spatial or architectural association in his art. He received his architectural education at Cooper Union, University of Cincinnati (BArch) and MIT (MArch) before winning the Rome Prize in Architecture in 1955. As a Fellow at the American Academy in Rome he explored the interconnected relationship between art and architecture and continued that tradition throughout his life. Though the award was for a one year residence, his explorations provoked such interest that he was asked to stay on for a second year. After his return to the States, Dan plied his trade as an architect, working for Eero Saarinen before joining CRS in Houston. Travel became a central preoccupation of his life and beyond Rome and Santiago, Chile, he and Donna lived in Istanbul, Cairo, Tokyo and Dhahran, Saudi Arabia and very nearly Beirut, Lebanon (the 1975 civil war preempted that move). Additionally, he traveled to every continent except the Arctic and Antarctic. While he was an avowed Modernist, he spent a lifetime visiting and ruminating over Man’s ancient creations, be they building, sanctuary, sculpture or painting. He was particularly intrigued by those generated through religious motivations. Dan loved flying and surveying earth’s features, and Man’s interventions, from above. He was equally enthralled by maps of all kinds and would mark his route as a way chronicling his explorations. It is thus no wonder that one can sense an aerial or plan expression when one looks at many of his oil and acrylic compositions. His favorite medium was oil on canvas but he also painted with acrylics on board as a way of sketching out his ideas or when traveling overseas. He spent years designing and constructing ever more elaborate stained-glass windows and lamps but he also delved into mosaics, silk screen, wood block and calligraphy. Stewart passed away in 2013.

H 42.5 in. x W 68.75 in. x D 1.75 in.