by MARVIN MESSING
SPONSORED BY WANDA HOLLENSTEINER GALLERY AT FLATHEAD COMMUNITY COLLEGE
- 28 oil on canvas and 4 intaglio prints.
- 24″ x 32″ – 72″ x 42″
- 2 crates, 30″ x 30″ x 30″, 48″ x 30″x 30″, 100 – 125 LBS
- Available April 2026 – December 2028
- Up to 6-weeks: $600/ 7 – 12-weeks: $1100
- Integrative Resources: Articles, Presentations by Messing’s daughters, and historical narratives: Marvin Messing attributed his art and its content to his participation in World War II. The exhibit, The Ride of Your Life, is his testimony of how the war changed his view of life. Also, the story of what Messing and his fellow mapmakers did while stationed on Espiritu Santos in the South Pacific is unique and relatively unknown. They were secretly a part of Naval Intelligence. His records at the Art Institute of Chicago are still marked CLASSIFIED.
This exhibit spans 64 years of Marvin Messing’s artistic creations, so it is retrospective. He was always quick to explain that his experiences in World War II profoundly influenced his work. Also, he repeated, “What I cannot say with words, I can say with my paintbrush.” His work is not easy to categorize. In a satirical and playful way Messing’s art raises social, political, and religious questions.
He accepted that “surrealism” fit many of his paintings. As a youngster he was fascinated by the surrealists’ work at the Chicago Art Institute. Surrealism was a reaction to the horrors of World War I; it is dreamlike and probes the unconscious…our hidden thoughts and dreams. Messing’s WWII experiences probably affected him like those artists after WWI. Both generations of young soldiers saw abhorrent things that they couldn’t “un-see”.
There is a historical aspect to this exhibit. Not only does the art span 64 years and touch a multitude of everyday subjects, but Messing’s experiences during WWII as a mapmaker drastically changed his outlook. Many veterans connect to his work. His images sear into memory.
MAGDA 