Warren Rosser
Slip-Wear
Warren Rosser (b. 1942) is the William T. Kemper Distinguished Professor of Painting at the Kansas City Art Institute and served as the Chair of the Painting Department until his retirement. He was born in the UK in South Wales and came to the US in 1972. Trained as a painter, he made sculpture and mixed media constructions for many years before coming back to painting in 1978.
This 2000 painting, Slip-Wear, was in the exhibition Warren Rosser: To be Continued... Selected Paintings from 1998 to 2004 at the South Dakota Art Museum. It included paintings Rosser created after his transition from three-dimensional work. These large, colorful acrylic paintings were constructed using palette knives, stencils, squeegees and masking tape, in lieu of paintbrushes, and feature the elliptical motif that is a hallmark of this series of work.
About the works created in this transition period, Rosser has stated: “A lot of earlier work, particularly the sculptural work, was layered and rather loaded with intellectually driven decision making. I wanted the new painting to reflect a different attitude, to have a certain freshness.” In regards to moving from oil paint applied with brushes to alternative applicators and acrylic paint, Rosser states, “I felt the gestures the hand was making were rehashing a certain language that no longer felt appropriate... it was almost like my hand was taking me back to what I knew and I wanted to go to a place that I didn't know.”
Learn more about Rosser and his recent work, visit Haw Contemporary.
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