Just a holding place for articles I’ve written about “Miss Carolyn” Bertrand Hodges.
Carolyn Bertrand, late eighties, painter with many mediums throughout her life, primarily uses ink these days. Ms. Bertrand invited me to assist her with bestowing her art.
Ms. Bertrand introduced herself to me several years ago at my art market. She was so impressed that someone started one in Houston that she gave me her own written proposals to the City of Houston for a similar market many years before. Hers included recycling, sustainability and was way ahead of the times. I recall displaying her work for the Heights 1st Saturday events. We have remained in touch thanks to her tenacity.
===== Below was published in The Leader, March 21, 2015. I have not located a copy, yet.
Last week I mentioned Carolyn Bertrand, the octogenarian and still very persistent artist. We had a chance to talk, and I wanted to fill you in on some more details about this amazing woman.
Bertrand was born and raised in Houston, and studied art while still a teenager at the The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston under Robert C. Joy. Bertrand tells me Joy introduced her to modern art including the works of Van Gogh, Cezanne, Matisse and many others whose works were equally as instrumental in shaping modern art today but not as well known to the public. Heck, Joy himself may have shaped the Houston art scene with his students, not to mention is own career. As a portraitist he completed hundreds of portraits including many iconic Texas figures like President Lyndon Johnson, Ima Hogg and cattleman and banker Gus S. Wortham.
Bertrand has been a life long student of art, but Joy, she told me, ruined her for other teachers when she was younger. She had a hard time finding teachers that knew more than herself. She said Joy’s instruction was that thorough. Following the MFA, Bertrand studied at the prestigious Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts with a grant from the Barnes Foundation. Ms. Bertrand had a lot to say about Albert Coombs Barnes, a major collector of the artists she was studying in school. Look him up and add the word scandal for an afternoon of fascinating reading.
Ms. Bertrand has lived life on her terms, clearly. Always looking for that elusive break to the big time, Bertrand worked when she needed to, and traveled to study when she wanted to. Researching the times and places she’s been is fascinating. She was part of the burgeoning modern art scene in Houston in the 1950’s. Bertrand recalls participating in juried shows alongside John Biggers, David Adickes and many other Houston artists.
Around 1955 Bertrand was studying sculpting in San Miguel de Allende, a city in central Mexico that is still popular with artists but just taking off then. As she put it, “Hollywood” came to town and filmed a movie while she was there! The film was Serenade starring the Mario Lanza. Oh yes, that’s another story too.
Fifty minutes on the phone just flew by. Bertrand’s passion for art is as intense as it ever was, perhaps more now. Don’t ask her if she still paints though!
Bertrand just hates it when people ask her if she still paints – and threatens to die with a paintbrush in her hand. Not that she’s trying, she has big plans on the horizon.
Trained in oils initially, Bertrand has tried her hand with many different mediums but today favors colored inks. Her intricate designs on watercolor paper are as easy to get lost in as a garden maze. In April, Bertrand is planning a solo show in the Heights at Happy Fatz, 3510 White Oak Dr. I’ll get back to you on a confirmed date plus more on Ms. Bertrand.
On Sunday, my friend Carolyn Betrand has her solo show at Happy Fatz from 3 to 6pm. Bertrand works only in pen and ink and says that her drawings are reminiscent of textured stone and jewelry.
“My subjects come to me, I don’t go to them. They’re intuitive imaginary meanderings.” Bertrand explains. “I try to keep modern, as old as I am. Contemporary art makes statements about current events.”
Bertrand is concerned about climate change. Ms. Bertrand says she doesn’t have the time to be shy anymore and speaks her mind when she wants too. She also assured me that she is to be reincarnated, she’s devoting her next life to being a sculptor.
Ms. Bertrand is a wealth of commentary on art and conversations with her are always informative and fun. Her work will be on display at Happy Fatz for an unspecified amount of time, get there this Sunday afternoon though so you can meet her in person and buy her art! Sunday, April 26, Happy Fatz, 3510 White Oak Dr. 3 – 6 p.m.
Despite my appearance here each week, bringing you art news and other artistic points of interest (albeit, primarily to me), I’m not exactly what you’d call verbose when it comes to art critique. In English – when it comes to art, I either like or I don’t, I feel no urge to discuss the finer points of what the artist was thinking or worse, wants “us” to think.
Enter “Miss Carolyn,” an oft-described senior most-artist in my world, who will very shortly be officially in her ninth decade plus one on our lovely planet.
Miss Carolyn loves to talk about art in all its forms. Especially modern contemporary art. We could not be further apart in our approach to art. I will say this, it is my opinion that her style and especially her most recent works are more in keeping with current times (social, political etc.) than artists still in their second and third decade here on Earth.
At a recent sculptural exhibit at SITE Gallery, Miss Carolyn dropped this beauty of a quote on me.
“These artists are like astronauts, exploring the unknown (space).”
She continued to elaborate that you have to get inside the mind of the artist to understand what they’re creating. She practically had to hit me over the head to sit down and listen, I was like a kid in the candy store.
At another exhibit, and I dare not say where, her comments were a lot simpler.
“Artists [work] are like flowers in the garden,” Miss Carolyn said. “Some are beautiful and leave you breathless, some you like okay, some you don’t like at all. Then there’s weeds, bugs and shrubbery.”
Carolyn Bertrand Hodges celebrates 91 years this week! Happy Birthday, Miss Carolyn! Her pen and ink work is available through SamaraGallery.com, and visit her on her web page at www.CarolynBertrandHodges.art.
Contemporary art is fragmentary, chaotic, like life now – it’s all about today’s issues. ~ Carolyn Bertrand Hodges
Snippet from May 13, 2017 – Page 9A > PDF https://issuu.com/burge/docs/leader0513_a
Regular readers here know of my friendship with Ms. Carolyn Bertand Hodges. She’s an octogenarian (and Houstonian) artist that I befriended after her many visits to my show.
She is the most persistent, never give up person I have ever met. She has a fixed income, a walker to help get around, uses public transportation and has no computer or smart phone. She lives on her own too.
Recently I helped her enter new art she created in competitions in Houston and Corpus Christi. I handled the computer and mailing part. She doesn’t have time to learn computers she says.
Miss Carolyn (as I like to call her) has taught me more about tenacity, persistence and goals by just being with her than any book on the subject.
I’m happy to report that Miss Carolyn now how has gallery representation at SAMARA Gallery, 3911 Main St. Houston TX 77002 and online at samaragallery.com. She did that one on her own.