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Randall Lavender

From EverybodyWiki Bios & Wiki

Randall Lavender is a nationally and internationally exhibited American artist, educator, writer, and arts administrator[1] who has worked in Los Angeles since the early 1980s.[2] His works in painting and sculpture are included in dozens of public and private collections and have been featured in numerous books,[3][4][5] catalogs,[6][7] articles,[2][8] and reviews.[9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17] He has contributed to the primary literature on art and design in higher education,[18][3][19][20] has provided academic and institutional leadership for Otis College of Art and Design,[21] and has consulted for other leading art and design schools.

The Beckoning (detail), 5’ x 11', oil on panel, 1985-86 (private collection)

Life and education

The grandson of Viennese émigré composer and USC music professor Ernest Kanitz, and son of composer and author William Lavender and historical researcher Mary B. Lavender,[22] Randall Lavender was raised in a household where, as Los Angeles Times lead art critic William Wilson noted, "artistic aspirations were normal."[9] He took art classes at Every Woman's Village in Van Nuys, California and at Riverside Art Museum[23] in Riverside, California in the 1960s and 1970s. While at John W. North High School in Riverside, California,[10][23] Lavender focused on art and ceramics; he then attended California State University, Fullerton, where he studied clay and glassblowing with ceramic sculptor Jerry Rothman. He earned a B.A. in Art (Ceramics) in 1979,[24] and an M.F.A. in Sculpture in 1981[21][6][25] at Claremont Graduate University in Claremont, California under mentor Roland Reiss.

Following graduate school, Lavender and his fellow student, sculptor John Frame, joined with architectural designer Eve Steele and artist/building contractor Lynn Roylance to develop a 14,000sf artists-in-residence leasehold project in the downtown Los Angeles area that became known as the "L.A. art colony."[2] Soon afterwards, Lavender accepted a teaching position at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, where he developed their first sculpture curriculum and studio space from the ground up[26][6]. At Vanderbilt, he showed new work, "painted reliefs whose theme is clear before labels are read," as one critic described them.[27]

Lavender returned to Los Angeles in 1983 to resume his full-time studio career.[11] He and Frame took neighboring studios in the Santa Fe Art Colony[5] complex, creating an adjoining, shared wood-shop.

Today, Lavender lives and works in West Los Angeles.[8]

Painting and sculpture

Following his early work in clay and glass, Lavender created painted figurative tableaux that combined two-dimensional imagery with three-dimensional form; the works were featured in Newcomers '79 at Los Angeles' Municipal Art Gallery. "The [show's] most accomplished pieces are sculptural objects combining contrasting materials," wrote Art Week critic Constance Mallinson. "Randall Lavender makes wall pieces ... [that] ... depict nearly life-size women situated in or against fanciful dioramas. Lively Freudian dream imagery and exotic flora and fauna imaginatively explore the ambiguous areas where dreams stop, and reality begins."[12]

Conflicting Ideals: Visual Mechanics, 23" x 23", oil, acrylic, pastel, and graphite on wood, plaster, and aluminum, 1983 (private collection)

Lavender's work expanded, in the early 1980s, into mixed media sculptural tableaux and pictorial works with relief, which one regional museum described as "realizing ideas through sculpture, painting, and drawing ... an overall dissolution of media boundaries."[26] The work included three series of sculptural and pictorial tableaux. Frames of Mind was inspired by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross and her delineation of five distinct stages of grief. Conflicting Ideals examined four systems of idealization—art, nature, science, and technology. A third series re-personalized the standard international symbols for Men and Women by placing them in evocative scenarios. Of these series, art critic Fay Renardson wrote, "Lavender's sculptural tableaux function as psychological dramas in which the artist's ideas are realized through a variety of media—sculpture, painting, and drawing ... [that] allude to the diversity of human nature ...."[13]

Conflicting Ideals: Empty Set, 23" x 23" x 6", oil and acrylic on wood, aerofoam, plaster, and glass, 1982, (private collection)

During Lavender's exploration of the interplay of two- and three-dimensional imagery in signifying themes and feelings, he traveled to Italy, where works by Old Masters provided new visual inspiration and prompted questions about late Modernism's penchant for routinely throwing out the "old" in favor of the "new."[11] Rejecting such dictums, Lavender adopted a more traditional language of realist figurative painting to embody contemporary themes and experiences.[2][9] He began painting figures in oil on panel, of which art critic Sandy Ballatore said, in L.A. Weekly (1986), "Lavender's world is like none other. Exquisitely crafted, it appears as solid as architecture and as transitory as its billowing drapery and glowing pink skies."[14] In 1986 Lavender joined with L.A. art dealer Jan Turner, whose West Hollywood gallery hosted a solo exhibition presenting Lavender's "works of classical clarity"[28] as a West Coast counterpart to New York's emerging neo-classicism. Of this work, art critic William Wilson wrote, "Lavender proves that any style can be employed as a mode of conceptual art and that something as presumably cerebral as conceptual art has roots in emotion ... [making] the point that universal myth and private striving are the same thing."[15]

Owl, 14" x 12", oil on panel, 1992 (private collection)

With work that critic Suvan Geer said "paints romantic, neoclassical ... curled, floating bodies on shaped panels suggesting vaulted doorways or portions from ceilings of Renaissance architecture,"[17] Lavender joined Tortue Gallery in Santa Monica, California in 1988. Subsequent paintings privileged architectural, landscape, and animal subjects over, or sometimes alongside, human figures. Five works featuring Lavender's animal subjects were included in ZOO: Animals in Art, compiled by art curator and critic Edward Lucie-Smith. Considering the owl to be "the traditional symbol of wisdom," Lucie-Smith selected Lavender's painting "Owl" (1992) for inclusion in his anthology, calling it "a successful rendering of the creature's personality and monumental form."[4] In 1994 Lavender was one of seven artists included in beyondappearance at the Armory Center for the Arts in Pasadena, California, a show that art critic William Wilson described as "presenting gifted L.A. artists who get less than their due because of the prejudice of fashion .... All want to make art mirroring a world that for them individually seems real. All place high value on traditional craftsmanship and timeless intuition. Inspirations range widely, from Hieronymus Bosch to French salon academics such as Jean-Léon Gérôme. There are whiffs of Surrealism, Photorealism and Assemblage. This work addresses aspects of life and art that are timeless and without conscious style. It uses humor and foolery to stave off desperation and hopelessness."[16] In beyondappearance, Lavender's "Moose on Stilts" (1992) was described by art historian and critic Richard Tobin as "The wry conversion of clinical study to poignant fable ... the outcome of a dialectic between observed truth and latent enigma ...."[29][6]

Moose on Stilts, 50” x 39”, oil on panel, 1992 (private collection)

Lavender's works are held by fifteen public collections, including those of the Frederick R. Weisman Foundation,[30] Oceanside Museum of Art,[31] and Laguna Art Museum, and are included in over four dozen private collections.[1]

Teaching

With his 1981 appointment to the faculty at Vanderbilt University,[13] Lavender began "a crucial time of reevaluation and reexamination in his artistic development ... which prompted an integration in his work."[26] In 1983, once back in L.A., he began teaching in Otis College of Art and Design's Foundation (first year) program;[25] he also held part-time teaching positions at Claremont Graduate University and California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.[32]

Teaching in Foundation at Otis College reinforced Lavender's convictions about the importance of aesthetic fundamentals (formal training) and commensurate skill-building in the early stages of an artist's or designer's higher education.[33][34] Seeing the wide variety in students' processes of learning prompted him to investigate the scholarship of teaching and learning, which in turn informed his classroom methods.[35] In 1988 Lavender was appointed Assistant Chair of the Foundation Program; he became Associate Chair in 2004,[36] when he was also named Professor at Otis College.[21] He was honored with Otis College's Teaching Excellence Award in 2005,[37] and appointed Professor Emeritus in 2021.[38]

Academic research and publications

Having applied his research into learning theory to his own studio-classrooms, Lavender published an article on myths and needs surrounding three-dimensional design curricula in FATE in Review Journal: Foundations in Art: Theory and Education(2001).[35] A broader view of the same issues, looking also at two-dimensional design curricula, appeared in "The Subordination of Aesthetic Fundamentals in College Art Instruction," in Journal of Aesthetic Education(2003).[18] Based on these and other of his publications, Lavender was asked to contribute to a volume for students of Fashion Design—specifically, to illuminate the meaning of jeans. "My Jeans, Myself, and I" appeared in Garb: A Fashion and Culture Reader (2007).[3] Later research focused on educational psychology and, specifically, attribution theory, and Lavender undertook a formal research project centered on a cohort of art and design students. With two Ph.D. psychologists, Selena T. Nguyen-Rodriguez and Donna Spruijt-Metz, he published "Teaching the Whole Student: Perceived Academic Control in College Art Instruction" in Studies in Art Education: A Journal of Issues and Research (2010).[19] This research, and its implications for college art pedagogy, was presented at the California Art Association national conference in 2009,[39] and, along with other articles of Lavender's, has been cited by over three dozen authors.[20]

Higher education leadership and consulting

In 2010 Lavender joined the Otis College administration as Interim Co-Provost,[25] along with colleague Debra Ballard. A year later, upon the arrival of a new College Provost, Kerry Walk, Ph.D,[40] Lavender was appointed Vice Provost.[41] With the 2014 departure of the College's President, Dr. Walk became Interim President,[42] and Lavender was appointed Acting Provost.[1] In this role, he gave a presentation to the California Legislative Joint Committee on the Arts[43] on the Otis Report on the Creative Economy. In mid-2015 a new Otis President arrived, and Lavender was formally appointed Provost.[44] He led Otis' first academic collective bargaining,[45] developed a new academic plan,[25] and launched a campus-wide strategic planning process, before leaving the Provost position late in 2018 to return to his studio.

In early 2019 Lavender was asked by the Otis College Board of Trustees to serve as Interim President,[21][40] a position he held for fourteen months(to June 2020). During that time he completed and gained Board-approval of a five-year Strategic Plan,[46][47] oversaw successful WASC[44] and NASAD[48] re-accreditation visits, and fulfilled searches for a new Provost and a Chief Financial Officer. During that period Lavender also led the institution's first-stage responses to the COVID-19 crisis, including campus shut-down and transition to online education.

Today, Lavender brings his art education and administrative experience to consultancies with educational institutions on projects such as clarifying and bolstering shared governance, strategic planning, and other administrative issues. Consultancies have included work with Laguna College of Art and Design, Cornish College of Art, San Francisco Art Institute Archived 2022-07-19 at the Wayback Machine, and Kansas City Art Institute.[38]

Other creative activities

In addition to his work in the visual arts, Lavender wrote several pieces of fiction or historical adaptation, including three original screenplays and a Young Adult novel. "Latude," an adaptation for the screen, was based on the harrowing chronicle of a man wrongfully imprisoned in 18th century France; the work was named a Finalist in the Malcolm-Vincent Screenwriting Contest (1992). Lavender's original screenplay, "No Turning Back," tells the story of a disturbed teen's transformation into a powerful young woman; it was optioned for first right of refusal from TMG (2003 Ned Nalle, Executive Producer), was a Finalist in the 1st Annual IndieProducer Screenwriting Competition (2002), and was a Quarter-finalist in the Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting Competition (2002). "The Golden Boy," a screenplay that follows a grieving woodsman through his metamorphosis into a prolific and profound artist—and art world sensation—earned Third Place in the 5th Annual IndieProducer Screenwriting Competition (2007).

For a Young Adult manuscript drawn from "No Turning Back," Lavender garnered literary representation by the Mitchell J. Hamilburg Agency from 2006-2010. The work was a Finalist in the SCBWI Kimberly Colen Memorial Grant competition (2006), and was twice a Semi-Finalist in the William Faulkner-William Wisdom Creative Writing Competition (2006 and 2012).[38]

Selected exhibitions

Solo (of 10)

1995, 1993, 1991, 1989    Tortue Gallery, Santa Monica, California

1990    Riverside Art Museum, Riverside, California

1987    Jan Turner Gallery, Los Angeles, California

1984    Art Gallery, Santa Monica College, Santa Monica, California

1983    Conflicting Ideals, Fine Arts Center at Cheekwood, Nashville, Tennessee

Group (of 54)

2010    Selections from the Permanent Collection, Groves Gallery, Oceanside Museum of Art, Oceanside, California.

2000    Representing L.A.; Pictorial Currents in Contemporary Southern California Art, Frye Art Museum, Seattle, Washington; 2001 Art Museum of South Texas, Corpus Christi, Texas.

1996    Imaginary Realities: Surrealism Then and Now, Louis Stern Fine Arts, Los Angeles, California.

1995    beyondappearance, Oliver Art Center, California College of Arts, Oakland, California.

1994    beyondappearance, Armory Center for the Arts, Pasadena, California.

1989    California Artists from the Frederick R. Weisman Foundation Collection, Phinney Gallery, Annenberg Art Wing, Palm Springs Art Museum, Palm Springs, California.

1987    Contemporary Humanism: Reconfirmation of the Figure, Visual Arts Center, California State University, Fullerton.

1986    Selections from the Frederick R. Weisman Foundation Collection, Centre National des Arts Plastiques, Paris, France.[30]; 1986 Museu Calouste Gulbenkian, Lisbon, Portugal[30]

External links

Video: California Joint Legislative Committee on the Arts

Official Website: randalllavender.com

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "California Joint Committee on the Arts Informational Hearing Biographies" (PDF).
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Harris, Scott. “L.A.’s Art Colony.” Los Angeles Times, 9 March, 1986, G58 (illus).
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "My Jeans, Myself, and I," in Garb: A Fashion and Culture Reader, edited by Parme Giuntini and Kathryn Hagen, New Jersey; Pearson Prentice Hall, 2007, 80-92, illus
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lucie-Smith, Edward (1998). Zoo: Animals in Art. Watson-Guptill Publications. pp. 40, 71, 150, 210, 213 (color illus). ISBN 0-8230-5981-2. Search this book on
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Guide to Artists in Southern California, p.37. Art Resource Publications. 1994. ISBN 0-9642995-0-X. Search this book on
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 "Exhibition Catalog–Beyond Appearance".
  7. ↑ "Contemporary Humanism: Reconfirmation of the Figure".
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Gonzaque, Alina | Staley, Robert (photography). "Living Brentwood," September 2019 (illus.) pp16-19
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Wilson, William. “The Shock of the Old.” Los Angeles Times, 27 March, 1988, 5 (illus). [1]
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Cline, Mary Alice. ‘The Big Picture’ in more ways than one.” The Press Enterprise, Riverside, California, 11 November, 1990, D2.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Wilson, William. “The Shock of the Old.” Los Angeles Times, 27 March, 1988, 5 (illus).
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Mallinson, Constance. "A Harvest of Newcomers." Art Week, 13 October 1979, 8 (illus) https://archive.org/details/sim_artweek_1979-10-13_10_33/page/8/mode/1up
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Renardson, Fay. "Lavender's Sculptural Tableaux at Cheekwood." The Register, Nashville, Tennessee, 8 April 1983, 6 (illus)
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Ballatore, Sandy. "The Next Generation: 1986 Critics' Picks." L.A. Weekly, 5 December, 1986, 33 (illus)
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 William Wilson. "The Art Galleries." Los Angeles Times, 16 January 1987, 14 https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-01-16-ca-3677-story.html
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Wilson, William. “Ruminations on the Resistance to Nature.” Los Angeles Times, 28 January, 1994, F28.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Geer, Suvan. Los Angeles Times, 15 September, 1989, 21.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "The Subordination of Aesthetic Fundamentals in College Art Instruction".
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 "Teaching the Whole Student: Perceived Academic Control in College Art Instruction," Studies in Art Education: A Journal of Issues and Research, 2010, 51(3), 198-218 (Selena T. Nguyen-Rodriguez and Donna Spruijt-Metz, co-authors)
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Per Google Citations re: two articles by R. Lavender, accessed 19 January, 2023
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 21.3 "Otis College–Interim President".
  22. ↑ Obituary of Ernest Kanitz, Los Angeles Times, 19 Apr 1978, Wed. p 32
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 Trust, Linda. “Growing Up in Art.” Inland Empire Magazine, September 1981, 73
  24. ↑ "Titan Magazine, Winter 2014, Annual Review p.41".
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 25.2 25.3 "Otis College–New Leadership".
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 Zibart, Kittler. Guide to Randall Lavender's "Conflicting Ideals" solo exhibition at Cheekwood Fine Arts Center, Nashville TN, March 12-April 17, 1983.
  27. ↑ Wilson, William. "Cal State Fullerton Show in Search of a Theme," Los Angeles Times, 2 October 1984, Calendar, 1.
  28. ↑ Simon, Hazel. "Ceramic Artist Takes Leap to Three-Dimensional Painting," Riverside Press-Enterprise, 22 February 1987, C-3
  29. ↑ Tobin, Richard. beyondappearance (exhibition catalogue), Armory Center for the Arts, Pasadena, California, 16 January-13 March 1994, 11.
  30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 30.2 "Frederick R. Weisman Art Foundation–Past Exhibitions".
  31. ↑ "Oceanside Museum Permanent Collection".
  32. ↑ "Otis College of Art and Design Removes President".
  33. ↑ “Finding Solid Ground,” Global Study Magazine, Issue 3.1, Spring 2005, 12-15.
  34. ↑ “Art and Design Education: Get it Right,” Associated Content; The People's Media, October 2, 2006
  35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 "Teaching and Supporting an Authentic Three-Dimensional Design Curriculum," FATE in Review Journal, Vol. 23, 2001, 12-19".
  36. ↑ "Otis College–Student Handbook 2013, p.13" (PDF).
  37. ↑ "Otis College–Past Teaching Excellence Award Recipients".
  38. ↑ 38.0 38.1 38.2 "R. Lavender CV" (PDF).
  39. ↑ "CAA 9th Annual Conference, Los Angeles" (PDF).
  40. ↑ 40.0 40.1 "Otis College–Timeline".
  41. ↑ "Otis College–President's Cabinet".
  42. ↑ "Community memo from Dr. Kerry Walk, Interim President" (PDF).
  43. ↑ "Testimony before the California Legislative Joint Committee on the Arts, Sacramento, 15 April 2015".
  44. ↑ 44.0 44.1 "WASC 2018 Final Action Letter–Otis College" (PDF).
  45. ↑ "Report of the WSCUC Team for Reaffirmation of Accreditation pp 6, 7, 8, 20, 49" (PDF).
  46. ↑ "Otis College–Strategic Planning Process".
  47. ↑ "Strategic Planning memo by Interim President Lavender" (PDF).
  48. ↑ "NASAD 2020 Commission Action Letter–Renewed" (PDF).


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