A Look Back: A Retrospective of Modern Artist Stanley Bate

Our upcoming exhibition is a retrospective of the work of Modern artist, Stanley Bate. For this exhibition, Sorelle has added over 25 new paintings to our collection, which spans several decades of the Abstract Expressionist painter's career. 

Artwork by Stanley Bate will be on view at Sorelle Gallery beginning Saturday, September 11. The paintings are consigned through an Upstate New York-based estate which holds a large collection of Stanley Bate's work. 

Born in 1903, Stanley Bate was undoubtedly exposed to the varied styles and techniques that were emerging during his formative years as part of the New York School of artists. During his time in New York, he absorbed the varied influences of his peers and contemporaries like Mark Rothko, Robert Motherwell, Joseph Cornell, Jackson Pollock, and Louise Nevelson, and soon his early realistic landscapes and still-lifes were replaced with something entirely new. We see nods to color field, collage, the mixing of textures into paint, mixed media, the inclusion of found objects and thick, luscious impasto.

By the early 1940’s, Stanley and his wife, Emilie moved to Craryville, New York, a few hours north of Manhattan. Craryville was Stanley’s home until his death on August 21, 1972. The Albany Institute of History and Art held a retrospective exhibition of Bate’s work in 1973. Since his death, Stanley Bate’s artwork has been exhibited widely and placed in numerous collections.

When discussing his work, Stanley Bate said, “Art is not an object, but an experience. To be able  to perceive it, we need to be receptive… (As to) the metaphysical quality… I would rather have it convey itself to the viewer. My paintings have no predetermined plan. They are usually worked out on the canvas. Their source may be subconscious, intuitive, unknown. I try to complete a painting in the shortest period of time in order to preserve the initial impulse. Whether my very personal feeling is communicated to the viewer, I don’t really care, nor do I think it makes any difference. It makes me paint, and I am gratified if someone finds some joy in my paintings.”

"We have carried artwork by Stanley Bate for several years," says Sorelle owner, Sandy Pelletier. "But it's exciting to showcase his work in this way, especially the pieces we've just added - they provide an incredible sense of what an insightful artist Bate was. You can see he didn't shy away from experimentation or taking risks, but his body of work is undeniably linked by energy and depth."

Bate received many awards in both national and local competitions. His works can be found in the following collections: Aldrich Collection, Nelson Rockefeller Collection, Library of Congress, Carnegie Institute, Albany Institute of History and Art, Berkshire Museum and Munson-Williams-Proctor Institute.

Our Stanley Bate retrospective will be on view at Sorelle through Sunday, October 3rd. Light refreshments will be available in-store the day the show opens. RSVP is not required to attend the show. 

To see all art by Stanley Bate and learn more about his life and career, visit his Artist Page. 

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Source: Stanley Bate exhibition catalogue, Opera Gallery, New York, 2012