RINGLING MUSEUM ACQUIRES ITS FIRST GEORGE PAPPAS PAINTING
Sarasota, FL – Dec. 12, 2011 – The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art today announced the recent acquisition of Double Trouble, 2002, the first painting in the Ringling Museum’s permanent collection by noted Florida artist George Pappas. The large oil painting, part of a larger series of abstract paintings titled Barriers, is set to join the Ringling’s 20th century Abstract Art from the permanent collection displayed in the Ulla R. and Arthur F. Searing Wing. Double Trouble will be on exhibition from December 5, 2011.
“Double Trouble reflects Pappas’s oeuvre and is a representation of the artist’s mature abstract work,” said Steven High, executive director of The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art. “It is an outstanding example of the ‘Art of Our Time,’ and an important addition to works by other celebrated Florida artists, such as Syd Solomon, already in the permanent collection.”
The Ringling’s purchase of Double Trouble is made possible through a generous donation by collector Henry V. Heuser, Jr., a resident of Louisville, KY, and frequent visitor to Sarasota.
Pappas’s paintings have been shown throughout the United States in more than 150 juried exhibitions, including the Corcoran Biennial, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. His work is included in numerous private and public art collections, including The National Gallery of Art, The deCordova Museum, Des Moines Museum, Tampa Museum, and the Neiman Marcus Corporation. George Pappas’s impact on the arts in Florida, both as a pedagogue and practicing artist, is well known.
Born in Boston, MA, George Pappas grew up in New York City and New England. He holds degrees from The Massachusetts College of Art (BS) Harvard University (MA with study at M.I.T.), and Penn State University (Ed.D.). Pappas was the Chair of the Department of Art at the University of South Florida. He has also held faculty positions at Northern Iowa University and Penn State University.