Clarence Major is among the most celebrated and innovative of contemporary African American writers.
Born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1936, Major’s untiring production as a poet, essayist, editor, lexicographer, and painter testifies to his versatility as an artist. Clarence Major is the author of Emergency Exit, 1979, My Amputations (1986), Such Was the Season (1987), Painted Turtle (1988), and Juba to Jive (1994), an expanded edition of his 1970 Dictionary of American Slang.
Major writes and paints the life he experiences, «I’m often interested in painting what I feel about what I see rather than what I think I see or remember or imagine.» During all his years of writing, for which he is principally known, Major has continued to paint and exhibit works on paper and canvas which narrate the story of American life in visual form. Equally inspired Van Gogh, and Henri Matisse, Major paints in a neo-expressionist mode, fusing vibrant fauvist color with tonal modeling and exuberant brushwork. The exhibition Configurations, is comprised mostly of female figurative work, whose languorously posed women belie the unequivocal directness they possess.
Clarence Major was a National Book Awards finalist in 1999. He is recipient of many awards, among them, a National Council on The Arts Award (1970), a Fulbright (1981-1983), a Western States Book Award (1986) and two Pushcart prizes–one for poetry, one for fiction. Major is a contributor to many periodicals and anthologies in the USA, Europe, South America and Africa. He has served as judge for The National Book Awards, the PEN-Faulkner Award and twice for the National Endowment for The Arts. Clarence Major divides his time between teaching twentieth century American literature at the University of California at Davis and painting in his Sacramento studio.
Curated by Andrea Kalinowski
Opening reception: Friday, September 3, 6:00pm
(The artist will be present)
