SPRINGVILLE — Regarding diversity, author James Baldwin said, "It is a great shock at the age of 5 or 6 to find that in a world of Gary Coopers you are the Indian."
What we've got in this year's Spring Salon, at the Springville Museum of Art, is a lot of Indians. Oh, there are plenty of excellent Coopers, but it's the Indians that bring spunk to this show.
"The exciting thing for me," said museum director Vern Swanson, "is that our judges (Alexey L. Steele, and Ellie Sonntag Stephens) did a really good job in selecting 'this, that, and the other thing': modernism, post-modernism, visionary, impressionist, naturalist, traditionalist, conventional, illustrative, etc. They weren't afraid to choose pieces that are not normally chosen for the show."
The entries for this year's Salon numbered 973, the second largest group of submissions in the history of the museum. "We have 263 pieces in the exhibition," said Swanson. "I think that's the largest show since I've been here."
Another distinction in this year's show is the considerable participation of the "100 Most Honored Utah Artists." "I haven't counted them yet," said Swanson, "but I believe that at least 60 to 70 pieces in the exhibition are from the '100.' "
Members of the "100" entering the Salon are guaranteed at least one piece in the show. (Each can enter two.) They are also allowed to participate without paying the entrance fee. Some of the "100" are unknown in Utah, but famous elsewhere, sending artwork to galleries in such places as New York, New Mexico and California.
"You know," Swanson said, "Utah is the leading Western state for exporting art per capita. We have lots of artists who live here, but not all of them can make it here financially. Having them in the show is good for us, good for them and it's good for the people of Utah."
However, while the "100" are allowed to enter without the risk of being juried out, this doesn't mean they automatically win all the Salon awards. "Although I was amazed at the number of awards and merit awards given to them," said Swanson.
As in past shows, the most exciting aspect of the exhibit for Swanson is the debut of completely unknown artists. "Who is Paul Butler?" he said. "I don't know, but he won an award, a cash award."
Swanson admits to not knowing several of the exhibition artists, reiterating that the Salon is not just a show for the old established artists. "It's a show for up and down the line. That, I think, is the joy of the show."
The museum has already acquired two works from the show, purchasing "The Dance" by Edie Roberson and Kathryn Stats' "Vista (Torrey, Utah)," which was purchased and donated to the museum by Louise Clyde.
Swanson was also thrilled with this year's jury in works of modern art. He recognizes that many consider the Springville Museum of Art to be a "paleo-conservative institution." But he doesn't agree. "I think it's nice that artists such as Denis and Bonnie Phillips and Lee Deffebach, who are the grand masters of Utah Modernism, continue to have faith and believe that this show has something to offer them. And it does. In fact, Denis' piece, 'Skyscape,' won the Directors Award."
So, the "Coopers" and especially the "Indians" in the 79th Annual Spring Salon — which runs through June 29 — make for a memorable exhibition that all should enjoy.
E-mail: gag@desnews.com