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Professor Wallace Owens, Jr., is to be the featured Capitol Exhibition Artist in the East Gallery of the Oklahoma State Capitol beginning this May. Owens is a long-time Guthrie resident and the Owner/ Curator of Owens Arts Place Gallery in Guthrie, the first and only fine arts museum in the history of Logan County.
His work attests to his versatility as a painter, sculptor, and printmaker. He explores a wide range of subjects using a variety of materials and techniques. His media include oils and acrylics, as well as wood, metal, and bronze sculptures.
Owens has exhibited his work throughout the Midwest. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in art education at Langston University, a Master’s degree in art education at the University of Central Oklahoma, and a Master of Fine Arts at the University of Guanajuato in Mexico. He studied painting at the American Center for Artists in Paris, France. As a Fulbright Scholar, he studied art history at the University of Rome in Italy. During travels throughout West Africa, he studied African art and culture. In Greece, he conducted historical research and sketched many of the historical sites.
His education and travels greatly enriched his teaching, whetherinhumanities, art, or art history classes. Following a distinguished career in higher education, Professor Owens retired from the art department at the University of Central Oklahoma.Heisamember of the State Arts Council.
In 1997, Owens executed and erected a twenty-foot metal sculpture for Langston University’s Centennial Celebration. He also executed a bronze bust of one of the University’s past presidents, and it is the centerpiece, along with those of the other presidents, of the Langston University Centennial Walk of Fame.
Owens has a private studio on his ranch in Guthrie, Oklahoma. He is very active with the Oklahoma Sculpture Society and a member of the Board of Directors for the NTU Art Association in Oklahoma City.
This distinguished artist was featured before at the Capitol about 30 years ago.
Professor Owens’ art has already been hung in the East Gallery in preparation of his show. On May 5th, there will be a reception from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. in the East Gallery of the Capitol to kick off Owens’ exhibition. His 12 paintings will be featured there for at least two months. There is no cost for visitors to tour the East Gallery to view his work.
The Oklahoma Arts Council supports the work of professional Oklahoma artists by showcasing their work in three galleries in the Oklahoma State Capitol. Exhibitions exemplify the outstanding and diverse artistic talent of the people of Oklahoma while enriching lives and promoting public interest and understanding of the arts. Exhibitions in the North, East, and Governor’s galleries rotate every 60 days and are viewed by thousands of people from around the world who work in and tour the historic building.
For more information, go to: www.facebook.com/ OklahomaArtsCouncil or www.arts.ok.gov and choose the East Gallery from the drop down menu.