FOUNDERS FEATURE: THOMAS NUZUM
The Founders Feature highlights the Buckham Fine Arts Project and the artists involved from our early days. Each artist and their story will be highlighted for one week.
Founders Feature: April 23 - April 29
Thomas Nuzum, 1942-2011, was one of the founding members of the Buckham Fine Arts Project. He was influenced by the entirety of Art History, especially Arshile Gorky. Nuzum built dynamic compositions and developed a personal iconography of images, forms, and color.
Nuzum attended the California College of Art where he received a B.F.A. and M.F.A. He was a Fullbright Scholar in Valencia, Spain and held teaching positions at San Francisco State, Murray State, Kentucky and the University of Wisconsin, before moving to Flint, Michigan. Nuzum taught at Mott Community College from 1973 until the time of his death in 2011. In addition to many exhibitions at Buckham Gallery, he exhibited in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Chelsea and Spain.
Founders Feature: April 23 - April 29
Thomas Nuzum, 1942-2011, was one of the founding members of the Buckham Fine Arts Project. He was influenced by the entirety of Art History, especially Arshile Gorky. Nuzum built dynamic compositions and developed a personal iconography of images, forms, and color.
Nuzum attended the California College of Art where he received a B.F.A. and M.F.A. He was a Fullbright Scholar in Valencia, Spain and held teaching positions at San Francisco State, Murray State, Kentucky and the University of Wisconsin, before moving to Flint, Michigan. Nuzum taught at Mott Community College from 1973 until the time of his death in 2011. In addition to many exhibitions at Buckham Gallery, he exhibited in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Chelsea and Spain.
The Work
Thomas Nuzum, November 2010
At this point in my life I see more than ever the practice of painting as an attempt to synthesize sensuous object-making and the creation of images which are both personal and, I hope, universal.
The current fascination with dogs, while certainly a response to their daily presence and the particularities of their physical rom, has become the primary motivation for a kind of theatrical figuration. The characters, the settings, the paint and the mood suggest impending interplay. The stillness of anticipation before the action is the kind of stillness that painting and similar media can offer; It is a mirror of the stillness of spirit within all of us.
Thomas Nuzum, November 2010
At this point in my life I see more than ever the practice of painting as an attempt to synthesize sensuous object-making and the creation of images which are both personal and, I hope, universal.
The current fascination with dogs, while certainly a response to their daily presence and the particularities of their physical rom, has become the primary motivation for a kind of theatrical figuration. The characters, the settings, the paint and the mood suggest impending interplay. The stillness of anticipation before the action is the kind of stillness that painting and similar media can offer; It is a mirror of the stillness of spirit within all of us.
One of the iconic founders of Buckham Gallery, Thomas Nuzum, along with several Flint area artists, was instrumental in the emergence of Buckham Fine Arts Project in 1984.
Born in Columbus Ohio and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, following college in California, Thomas Nuzum traveled extensively throughout Mexico, South America, and Europe before returning to the midwest and settling in the Flint area, eventually establishing a home and studio in Byron, Michigan. It was a teaching position at Mott Community College that brought Nuzum to Flint and, it was during his years there that he became a legend.
Producing an ambitious body of work that spanned five decades, Nuzum exhibited throughout the country, including New York City, Chicago, and San Francisco. Nuzum's work "was about magic and mystery, tempered with a large subjective but believable dose of reality...The dynamics of Thomas Nuzum's compositions are only surpassed by the uniqueness of his color exploration," wrote Ted Ramsey, Professor Emeritus, School of Art and Design, University of Michigan -Ann Arbor. "Nuzum painted what he knew and put a personal twist on every aspect of even the simplest of subjects such as toys or his household pets."
An intellectual painter, Thomas Nuzum's imagery reflected the literature he read, the travels he experienced, and personal associations with family, friends, animals, and his environmental surroundings. In addition to the immense volume of painitngs Nuzum produced in his lifetime, his profound influence on Flint's art community remains significant. Nuzum's contributions linger, his presence still felt. Thomas Nuzum lost his battle with cancer and died on February 2, 2011. He touched the lives of many and left behind a tremendous legacy, a much-loved and admired artist.
Born in Columbus Ohio and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, following college in California, Thomas Nuzum traveled extensively throughout Mexico, South America, and Europe before returning to the midwest and settling in the Flint area, eventually establishing a home and studio in Byron, Michigan. It was a teaching position at Mott Community College that brought Nuzum to Flint and, it was during his years there that he became a legend.
Producing an ambitious body of work that spanned five decades, Nuzum exhibited throughout the country, including New York City, Chicago, and San Francisco. Nuzum's work "was about magic and mystery, tempered with a large subjective but believable dose of reality...The dynamics of Thomas Nuzum's compositions are only surpassed by the uniqueness of his color exploration," wrote Ted Ramsey, Professor Emeritus, School of Art and Design, University of Michigan -Ann Arbor. "Nuzum painted what he knew and put a personal twist on every aspect of even the simplest of subjects such as toys or his household pets."
An intellectual painter, Thomas Nuzum's imagery reflected the literature he read, the travels he experienced, and personal associations with family, friends, animals, and his environmental surroundings. In addition to the immense volume of painitngs Nuzum produced in his lifetime, his profound influence on Flint's art community remains significant. Nuzum's contributions linger, his presence still felt. Thomas Nuzum lost his battle with cancer and died on February 2, 2011. He touched the lives of many and left behind a tremendous legacy, a much-loved and admired artist.
A special thank you to Board Member and Buckham Artist, Corinne Nuzum, for the images used above.