About the Artist
“What I paint and why I paint is a result of my past and continuing experiences.
“I was a fun, sensitive, angular sort of kid with a bit of rascal thrown in. My interests were in music, not in art; that appeared much later. Any creative musings were shut down as I graduated from college…with the draft and war in SE Asia looming on the horizon I made a life-changing decision and opted for OCS in the US Marine Corps. Short story long, I survived 13 months as a combat commander in Vietnam, was ultimately released (as a Captain) from my active/inactive duty obligations and in late 1969, morphed into a civilian.
“My post-war thinking prompted me to aggressively pursue ‘living’. In the early 1970’s I left Florida with 3 other non-sailors on a 100 yr. old Danish schooner, and while crisis-crossing the Bermuda Triangle, we taught ourselves how to sail. From the Bahamas we island-hopped into the Caribbean. I stayed in St. Thomas for one year, followed by 4 months in Europe, ultimately winding up in Israel where, with zero cooking experience, I lied my way into a chef’s position at a French/Italian restaurant in Tel-Aviv… but that’s another story.
“This wanderlust culminated with a trans-Atlantic Ocean crossing (from Scotland to Portugal, Africa and then on to the West Indies) with a Marine buddy in a 30′ sloop. The passage from Casablanca to St. Maarten took 29 days.
“By the mid-70’s I was wearying of a life at sea. Having some creative impulses that needed addressing, I packed my seabag and moved to northern New Mexico (Taos) to try my hand at painting.
“After several years of toil, experimentation and thought, things began to come together in ultra-realistic detail on canvas, and to my surprise a career began to develop. By 1979 I was exhibiting with the nation’s leading super-realists (Chuck Close, Richard Estes, Duane Hansen, etc)..I was off and running.”
Born: 1944 (Miami Beach, Florida, USA)
Lived/Active: New Mexico
Profession(s): Painter
Known for: Portrait, Western, Botanical, Mixed Media
Style(s): Photo Realist, Contemporary, Mixed Media
Medium(s): Oil, Acrylic, Mixed Media
STUDIED:
Florida State University, BS in Business Administration; Major: Advertising & Public Relations…1962-66
Self-taught (career began in 1975 in Taos, NM.)
University of New Mexico, 1986…Oil painting, Art Theory, Modern Art History, Drawing
BOOKS:
1997, Art in the Ambassador’s Residence, US State Dept (color), Exhibition Catalog
1992, New Art of the West, Eiteljorg Museum of Indian & Wester Art (color), Exhibition Catalog
1990, Art of Albuquerque, Albuquerque Museum (color), Exhibition Catalog
1980, Here & Now: 35 Artists in New Mexico, Albuquerque Museum (color), Exhibition Catalog
1979, Reflections of Realism, Albuquerque Museum (color), Exhibition Catalog
HONORS:
Who’s Who In America, 2013, 2014
FINE ART DIGITAL REPRODUCTIONS:
Some of Denham’s pieces are also available as museum quality digital reproductions (gicleés).
Visit www.clementsart.com for information.
ONGOING EXHIBITIONS:
Albuquerque Museum, part of the Permanent Collection “Common Ground”, Albuquerque, NM
Tucson Museum of Art, part of the Permanent Collection “Art of the American West”, Tucson, AZ
Vietnam Veterans Memorial (David Westphall Veterans Foundation) Angel Fire, NM
Heritage Park Veteran’s Museum Henry County, Georgia
SOLO EXHIBITIONS:
2015 – “Vietnam Elegy” at the Plaque Dedication for the 42nd OCC and TBS 4-67; The Marine Memorial Club, San Francisco, CA
2003 – Caesarea Gallery, Boca Raton FL
1998 – Culiver Cadillac & The Book Vine, Scottsdale, Arizona
1997 – The Book Vine, Scottsdale, Arizona
1981 – P, M & Stein Gallery, New York, New York
1979 – The Foundry, Washington, DC
1979 – Gallery Allene, Annapolis, Maryland
DUET EXHIBITIONS:
1984 – “Two Western Realists” – The Joan Lyon Gallery, Aspen, Colorado
1981 – “Black White & Color” with Marcie McKinnon – S. Rudy Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
GROUP EXHIBITIONS & INVITATIONALS:
2016 – “Vietnam Elegy”, DIGIE (Digital Information Gateway El Paso) Interactive Exhibition, El Paso Museum of History, El Paso, Texas
2015 – “Marines in Vietnam”, A Fifty Year Anniversary Commemoration of Marines Landing at Da Nang; Vietnam Gallery, National Museum of the Marine Corps, Triangle, VA
2005 – Caesarea Gallery, Boca Raton, FL
2005 – Karen Lynne Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2004 – Caesarea Gallery, Boca Raton, FL
2004 – Karen Lynne Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2003 – Caesarea Gallery, Boca Raton, FL
2002 – “Cheyenne Frontier Days”, Western Spirit Art Show, the Old West Museum, Cheyenne, WY
2002 – Coconut Grove Arts Festival, Coconut Grove, FL
1998 – “Annual Indian Market Exhibition” – Contemporary Southwest Galleries, Santa Fe, New Mexico
1996 – “Fine Art of Surgery” – 2nd Annual Invitational, Department of Surgery Endowment
1996 – “Art in Embassies” Program sponsored by U.S. Department of State, Ambassador’s Residence, Lima, Peru
1994 – “Gallery Opening / Print Signing” – Buffalo Gallery, Tysons Corner, Virginia
1993 – “Spring Group Show” – The West Gallery, Taos, New Mexico
1993 – “Fall Group Show” – The West Gallery, Taos, New Mexico
1992 – “New Art of the West” – 3rd Eiteljorg Invitational, Eiteljorg Museum of American Indian and Western Art, Indianapolis, Indiana
1992 – “MAGNIFICO!” – Albuquerque Festival of the Arts, Albuquerque, New Mexico
1992 – “Common Ground” – An Exhibition of the Permanent Collection, The Albuquerque Museum, Albuquerque, New Mexico
1991 – “MAGNIFICO!” – Albuquerque Festival of the Arts, Albuquerque, New Mexico
1990 – “Spring Group Show” – The Morgan Gallery, Taos, New Mexico
1990 – “Fall Group Show” – The Morgan Gallery, Taos, New Mexico
1990 – “Art of Albuquerque” – Albuquerque Museum, Albuquerque, New Mexico
1990 – “8th Anniversary Invitational” – Dartmouth Street Gallery, Albuquerque, New Mexico
1989 – “Spring Group Show” – The Morgan Gallery, Taos, New Mexico
1989 – “Fall Group Show” – The Morgan Gallery, Taos, New Mexico
1989 – “Black and White” – Santa Fe Spring Festival of Arts, Santa Fe, New Mexico
1989 – “Annual Miniature Show” – The Morgan Gallery, Taos, New Mexico
1988 – “Spring Group Show” – The Morgan Gallery, Taos, New Mexico
1988 – “Fall Group Show” – The Morgan Gallery, Taos, New Mexico
1987 – “Neighbors” – The Museum, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas
1987 – “Fall Group Show” – The Morgan Gallery, Taos, New Mexico
1987 – “Air” – Taos Spring Arts Festival, Taos, New Mexico
1986 – “Taos Invites Taos” – Taos Arts Festival, Taos, New Mexico
1986 – “Neighbors” – The Museum, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas
1986 – “Fall Group Show” – The Morgan Gallery, Taos, New Mexico
1985 – “Taos Invites Taos” – Taos Arts Festival, Taos, New Mexico
1985 – “Photorealism, 1985” – The Joan Lyon Gallery, Aspen, Colorado
1985 – “Landscapes of the Southwest” – Stables Art Center, Taos, New Mexico
1984 – “New Art New Mexico” – Stables Art Center, Taos, New Mexico
1983 – “Three Western Realists” – Gallery 10, Aspen, Colorado
1983 – “Faces of Taos” – Stables Art Center, Taos, New Mexico
1982 – “Taos Rejected” – Stables Art Center, Taos, New Mexico
1981 – “Made in (New) Mexico” – S. Rudy Gallery, Houston, Texas
1981 – “Eight from New Mexico” – San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, California
1981 – “Art of the Southwest” – BFM Gallery, New York, New York
1980 – “Here and Now; 35 Artists in New Mexico” – The Albuquerque Museum, Albuquerque, New Mexico
1980 – “Cowboys and Indians” – The Avarda Center for the Arts and Humanities, Arvada, Colorado
1979 – “Reflections in Realism” – The Albuquerque Museum, Albuquerque, NM
JURIED EXHIBITIONS:
2014 – The VA’s “National Veterans Creative Arts Festival” Milwaukee, WI First Place “Military Combat Experience”; Best of Show
2005 – 38th International Exhibition, International Museum of Art, El Paso, TX
2001 – “Traditional Fine Art 2001”, juried exhibition at The Art Center at Fuller Lodge in Los Alamos NM
2000 – “Seen/Unseen”, 9th Annual National Juried Exhibition, Runnels Gallery, Eastern New Mexico University, NM
2000 – “Free Spirit Juried Art Show & Sale” – The Hubbard Museum of American Art, Ruidoso, New Mexico
1999 – “Gateway National Juried Art Show” – Division of Cultural Affairs, Farmington Museum Gateway Park, Farmington, New Mexico
1998 – “Free Spirit Juried Art Show & Sale” – The Hubbard Museum of American Art, Ruidoso, New Mexico
1997 – “MAGNIFICO!” – Albuquerque Festival of the Arts, New Mexico – The Lewinger-Hamilton Award
1997 – “Fall America Art Show & Sale” – Museum of the Horse, Ruidoso, New Mexico – Best of Show Award
1986 – “The Spirit in Art” – Taos Spring Arts Festival, Taos, New Mexico
1985 – “Taos Today” – Taos Arts Festival, Taos, New Mexico
1984 – “Lubbock Arts Festival” – Lubbock, Texas
1983 – “Lubbock Arts Festival” – Lubbock, Texas
1982 – “Taos Today” – Taos Art Festival, Stables Art Center, Taos, New Mexico
1982 – “Photographers of Taos” – Stables Art Center, Taos, New Mexico
1982 – “Evolving Images” – Santa Fe Festival of the Arts, Santa Fe, New Mexico
1979 – “Taos Open Awards; Stables Gallery, Taos, New Mexico
LECTURES & DEMONSTRATIONS:
2016 – “Vietnam Elegy: The Story behind the Painting”, Keynote presentation at OASIS, Albuquerque, NM
2014 – “Vietnam Elegy: The Story Behind the Painting”, A Keynote presentation at Meadowlark Senior Center, Rio Rancho. New Mexico
1992 – “Painting Demonstration” – Eiteljorg Museum of American Indian and Western Art, Indianapolis, Indiana
1984 – “Professional Ethics in Museums” Seminar at The Museum, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Klaus, Peggy. “Artist Paints Expanded Realism”. THE TAOS NEWS, March 3, 1977
Landis, Ellen. REFLECTIONS OF REALISM Exhibition catalogue, The Albuquerque Museum, 1979
Raether, Keith. “Museum of Albuquerque Opens Realism Show”. Albuquerque Journal, October 24, 1979
Daigh, Janice. “Realist Shows” THE TAOS NEWS, December 27, 1979
Landis, Ellen. “Here and Now: 35 Artists in New Mexico” (Exhibition catalog) The Albuquerque Museum, 1980
Loniak, Walter. “Heartstoppingly Real” THE SANTA FE REPORTER, January 10, 1980
Mills, James. “Arvada Center Relives ‘Cowboys and Indians’ West”. THE DENVER POST, August 10, 1980
Barrett, Marjorie. “Arvada Sets Major Art Series” ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS, August 10, 1980
Chaffee, Katherine. “Art of the American West”, MUSE, Sept/Oct 1980
Chaffee, Katherine. “Peculiar the the West”, ARTSPACE, September 1980
Daigh, Janice. “Clements Portraits Real”, THE TAOS NEWS, September, 1980
Press Release: “Ellen Landis; Here and Now”, ARTLINES, December, 1980
Press Release: “Realist Art Exhibit at Albuquerque Museum”, ARTISTS OF THE ROCKIES & THE GOLDEN WEST, Winter, 1980
Review: “Here and Now” at the Albuquerque Museum. ARTSPACE, December, 1980
Press Release: “Top of the Line: Denham Clements”, ARTLINES, January, 1981
Gilbert, Lois. “Denham Clements; Photorealism with Soul”, ARTLINES, Feb, 1981
Review: “Eight From New Mexico” at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, SAN FRANCISCO TRIBUNE, March 10, 1981
Dunham, Judith. “A Review of Eight from New Mexico” at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, ARTWEEK, March 21, 1981
Wilson, Wendy. “A Review of the Season’s Opening Exhibit, S. Rudy Gallery, Santa Fe”, SANTA FE REPORTER, May 22, 1981
Braun, Moira. “Life in Black & White: A Profile on Denham Clements”. SANTA FE PROFILE MAGAZINE, Sept. 1981
Chaffee, Katherine. “Visions of the West”, ROCKY MOUNTAIN MAGAZINE, December, 1981
Review: “Living Portraits at the P, M & Stein Gallery”, NEW YORK GUIDE, through December 20, 1981
Pellicone, William. “Fantastic Performances… Photorealists?”, ARTSPEAK, New York, December 24, 1981 Forman, Joanne. “Faces of Taos”, review of Invitational Exhibit, Stables Art Center, Taos, New Mexico. THE TAOS NEWS, January 20, 1983
Winston, Steve. “More Alive Now (a Profile on the Artist’s Past)”, THE TAOS NEWS, February 3, 1983
Preview: “Gallery 10 Features Western Realists”, THE ASPEN TIMES, March 3, 1983
Preview: “Photorealistic Art to be Featured at Gallery 10″, THE SNOWMASS SUN, March 4, 1983
Cooke, Regina. “Art Notes (Denham Clements)”, THE TAOS NEWS, March 17, 1983
Preview: “At the Galleries”, THE ASPEN TIMES, February 23, 1984
Preview: “Western Realists Exhibit Set”, ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS, Feb 24, 1984
Preview: “At the Joanne Gallery”, ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS, Art Page, Feb 28, 1984
Cooke, Regina. “Art Notes (Denham Clements)”, THE TAOS NEWS, March 15, 1984
Bell, David. “The Heros Live On”. Review of “New Art / New Mexico”, Stables Art Center, Taos, New Mexico, September, 1984
Price, Max. Preview of “Photorealism 1985″, DENVER POST, August 16, 1985
Preview: “At the Joanne Lyon Gallery, Aspen”, THE BOULDER CAMERA, August 23, 1985
Scherch, Meg. “Taos’ Best”. Review of the 11th Annual “Taos Invites Taos” exhibit, TAOS NEWS, October 10, 1985
Clements, Denham. “Few Cast Stones”, response to review by Meg Scherch, THE TAOS NEWS, June 12, 1986
Cooke, Regina. “Art Notes: Clements to Exhibit at The Museum at Texas Tech University…”, THE TAOS NEWS, January 1, 1987
Preview: “The Art of Albuquerque: Study in Diversity”, supplement to ALBUQUERQUE MONTHLY magazine, April, 1990
Duty, Michael. “The West That Was and The West That Is” Exhibition catalogue 3rd Eiteljorg Invitational “New Art of the West”, 1992
Pulkka, Wesley. “Cultures in Collision”, review of the rehanging of the permanent collection at the Albuquerque Museum, THE ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL, March 12, 1995
Jett, Dennis. “Art in the Ambassador’s Residence” Exhibition catalog, ”Art in Embassies Program”, 1996
Pulkka, Wesley. “Magnifico! Portrait”, review of Albuquerque Festival of Arts exhibition, THE ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL, May 18, 1997
Kunich, Gary J “From the Jungle to the Art Studio”, Feature Article in ARTSGRAM, “2014 National Veterans Creative Arts Festival”, 2014
Front Cover and Feature Article, Spring 2015 Issue, American Legion AUXILIARY Magazine, 2015
Tania Casselle, “The Art of Healing,” Feature Article in New Mexico Magazine, May 2020