November 2 - December 7, 2024
From Archway Gallery:
“Archway Gallery presents Homeland: Random Musings of a Native Son, featuring new paintings and mixed media works by Harold Joiner, on view November 2 – December 5, 2024. The artist will be present to visit with guests at the gallery on November 2, from 2:00 p.m. through that night’s opening reception, and he will speak briefly about the works in the exhibition at 6:30 p.m.
As a native son of the American Southwest, Joiner often draws inspiration for his works from his childhood experiences growing up there and his frequent travels there as an adult. He takes pride in the fact that his home state of New Mexico is at the forefront of scientific developments today but is also unique for its Hispanic and Native American heritages. “I’m proud that my homeland gave birth to the earliest of civilizations in the Americas as well as the Nuclear Age in which we now live,” said Joiner. He has always drawn inspiration from visiting historical sites and ruins. “During the years that I lived in Saudi Arabia, while my expat friends were vacationing in Mediterranean resorts, I was trudging through the dusty ruins of places like Petra or Ephesus. They thought I was weird!” remarked Joiner. That continuing interest has led him to visit, and revisit, the historic sites of the American Southwest – places like Taos Pueblo and Chaco Canyon.
Joiner creates works in varying degrees of abstraction, depending on the subject matter or the message he wishes to convey. He is known for his “invented landscapes” that are abstract representations drawn from his imagination. For the “inventions” in this exhibition, he elevated his view of the landscape as a way to capture its depth and vastness. In all the works – landscape and otherwise – he tries to evoke the spirit of Southwest regional art without resorting to cliché.
The exhibition is comprised of paintings, mixed media collages, and assemblages that speak to the region’s unique cultural milieu, both historical and contemporary. Included are two paintings aided by AI technology, and one of these paintings is presented with an accompanying tutorial of its development. Joiner has an interest in how this new tool can be used to aid in the creation of unique artworks.
Joiner is an architect by profession and a graduate of Texas Tech University. His professional projects included numerous corporate, hotel, and institutional projects in Houston, other cities in the United States, and abroad. He lived and worked in Saudi Arabia for ten years, working first for Saudi Aramco in its properties division and then for a private local firm with offices in Saudi Arabia and Cairo, Egypt. He traveled extensively in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Indian Subcontinent, and Southeast Asia. His paintings have been featured in numerous exhibitions in the greater Houston area, and are owned by collectors in the United States, Canada, and Europe. He has been a member artist at Archway Gallery for twelve years and is the current Gallery Director.
ABOUT ARCHWAY GALLERY Artist owned and operated since 1976. Archway Gallery, one of Houston’s, and the nation’s, oldest artist-owned and operated galleries, is located at 2305 Dunlavy and is open Tuesday – Saturday from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. and Sunday from 1 – 5 p.m. Since 1976, Archway Gallery has been exhibiting the work of the area’s finest artists, providing an excellent selection of affordable, high quality art including sculpture, pottery, and painting in a variety of media and styles. One of the more than thirty member artists is always on site, providing visitors with a unique opportunity to meet the artists who created the work, offering a personal insight into the process. Each month features a special exhibition highlighting member artist(s). The public is invited to the monthly opening receptions that celebrate the new installations and work, usually held the first Saturday of each month from 5 – 8 p.m. In addition to monthly exhibitions, Archway also hosts a variety of demonstrations and monthly readings for local writers and authors, as well as a “Tea and Tour” program, providing visitors with a free artist-led tour of the current exhibition, followed by tea and refreshments. With thirty artist-members, Archway Gallery is THE destination in the Houston area for affordable art directly from the artist. For more information, visit ArchwayGallery.com or call 713.522.2409. Like Archway Gallery on Facebook.”
Reception: November 2, 2024 | 5–8 pm
2305-A Dunlavy
Houston, 77006 TX
(713) 522-2409
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