The Crossroads of Memory: Carroll Cloar and the American South

Organized by the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art and the Arkansas Arts Center, this exhibition featured works by Carroll Cloar from major public collections as well as rarely seen pictures still in private hands. Cloar’s complex style not only pays homage to the great American realist masters and the pointillism of the Post-Impressionists, but also blends these elements smoothly with the subtly disturbing images and themes of the Surrealists. His paintings, with their saturated colors, repeating patterns and shallow picture planes, offer a unique and timeless vision of the American South. Marking the centenary of the artist’s birth, the exhibition included approximately 70 paintings, ranging from early realist works to the poignant pictures of his later career.