Conversations with Stephen Kaltenbach
Stephen Kaltenbach – Out of Place, Out of Time ft. Francesca Wilmot, curator at the Crocker Art Museum. This “artist talk” turned out to be very exciting. I had seen Portrait of My Father , 1972-1979, at the Crocker Art Museum before, but I did not remember who the painter was, so when this talk happened it was a surprise to recognize the painting and put a name and face to the painting. It was a massive painting, depicting a realistic older man, but painted with short strokes, lines, and a subdued but ethereal color palette. Kaltenbach had explained this was some of his early work, and considers his work since the late 1960’s as “out of time.” Kaltenbach explained this concept a little further. He explained that his work was not related to time or place, likening it to his time capsules, which were items buried in one decade to be opened several decades later. I understood this as the capsule ceasing to exist in the time from which it was placed and remaining in a kind of lim...