Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1963-03-24
BY FRANK GETLEIN
~ star Art Critio

MIAMI. MOST visitors to
this refuge from the real and
earnest cold and snow find
art represented here chiefly
In the palm trees: on q windy
day they remind you Of Win
slow Homer; In sunlit calm
they recall Matisse. But for
just over q decade now, art
has also been represented by
the Joe and Emily Lowe Art
Gallery at the University Of
Miami, an enterprise that
has steadily grown stronger.
A. couple Of years ago q new
wing was built to house a
major donation from the
Samuel H. Kress Collection.
This week end is seeing an
other big step forward. The
university has opened its
first annual national paint
ing exhibition.
The structure Of the show
and its results reveal the adj
vantages Of q completely
open, completely juried, nom
invitational exhibition, ad-
vantages frequently over
looked by this observer and
others in denouncing COM
pletely open, completely ju-
ried. .noninvitational exhibit
tons,
The case against such
shows is that artists who
have arrived, financially or
in national reputation, are
reluctant to compete with
unknowns; they have much
to lose, little to gain. Hence,
open shows can easily consist
Of art by everyone except the
best known artists. For this
reason major national ex-
hibitions, such as the Cor
coran Biennial, the Whitney
and the University of Illinois
shows, are all or largely in
vitational. The director and/
or his staff in effect choose
the show.
The trouble there, Of
course. is the danger that
publicity itself does the real
choosing and nobody gets in
except the best known.
AIl-Juried Show
AS In most conflicts Of
principle, an awful lot de-
ponds on how the principles
are applied. At the Univer-
sity Of Miami. the principle
Of an open, all-juried show
has been applied so as to
produce an exhibition which
gladdens the heart and de-
lights the eye in its revela-
ton Of new talent from all
parts Of the country.
The talent isn't new in the
classical. Museum Of Mod
ern Art sense of an artist 10
years. old and inventor of a
new way to shred canvas.
Much OF 1t is thoroughly es-
tablished In various regions
Of the country but rarely
seen In New York. On the
whole, 1t must be accounted
conservative: the majority Of
the paintings are reaction
airy old oil on canvas: they
are reasonably well organ
lied, and most of them have
some point Of contact with
the world outside the studio.
Provincial
From one viewpoint. the
show could be called provin-
cial. but with the difference
that all the provinces are
represented except the loudest
Of them all. the New York
last word. The show has no
pop art and no color painting.
They're not missed. In
the absence Of the last word.
the show does have q lot OF
relevant words 10 speak about
art and life. Some Of them
appear In works by WASH
ington area artists.
-s Prize winners
James Twitty. a reformed
colonel now painting full
time In Georgetown. won q
Si00 prize with Metro Xxx"
a collage and paint picture
that recalls the city's walls
Of Ntpne and mountains OF
phnbf. Against a clear and
luminous blue sky. appears
the leaning edge OF a wall
covered with old newspapers,
strokes Of paint and the eyes
OF Mona Lisa.
Jack Perlmutter has q very
sEnap picture. a size rare for