For First Time in 23 Years, Slein Gallery Devotes Entire Footprint to a Single Artist

Philip Slein Gallery has filled every available wall in its Central West End location with the work of a single artist. The exhibition, titled Edward E. Boccia: An American Modernist, opened with a public reception on October 23 and remains on view through December 19. This is the first time in the gallery's 23-year history that it has dedicated its entire footprint to one creator.

Boccia lived in St. Louis for six decades after being born in New Jersey in 1921. He arrived at Washington University in 1951, where he taught for more than 30 years. He retired in 1986 as professor emeritus. Before that, he studied at the Pratt Institute and the Art Students League in New York, and he earned degrees from Columbia University after serving in the World War II Ghost Army.

The show displays more than 30 paintings that cover the full range of his career. The front room contains the large-scale pieces for which he is best known. These include the nine-panel autobiographical polyptych Eugene's Journey and the 2004 triptych David's Death. The latter is one of several works that meditate on the death of his son. A hallway features mythic scenes of ocean journeys and figures that appear to emit inner light.

The final room uses a salon wall arrangement to trace his artistic evolution. It moves from a 1950s portrait to a painting completed in 2012, shortly before his death at age 91. Influences from Paul Cézanne, Pablo Picasso, René Magritte, and Max Beckmann appear throughout the collection. Boccia produced thousands of paintings over his lifetime, ranging from small seaside scenes to monumental multi-panel works.

Rosa Berland, a New York-based art historian and curator, wrote the accompanying book for the show. She described Boccia's teaching style as rigorous but open to students finding their own kind of fire. She noted that he studied philosophy, theology, psychoanalysis, and history, yet he did not want his work to be didactic. A pamphlet for the exhibition includes his instruction: Don't worry about what my art means. Just experience it.

Gallery owner Philip Slein called the exhibition a very significant show. He stated that the only thing that could be bigger than this would be at an institution. He recalled that Boccia kept working until his death, adding that if he wasn't sleeping or eating, he was drawing. Slein credited Morton D. May, whose collection was partially gifted to the Saint Louis Art Museum, as Boccia's greatest patron.

The companion book, Edward E. Boccia: Painter of Nightmares and Dreams, will be published by Hirmer during the run of the exhibition. It is the first major monograph on the artist and includes the result of 14 years of research by Berland. The volume contains dozens of images, including fold-out plates that show the scale of his multi-panel paintings, along with scholarly essays and historical overviews.

Berland said the work matters now because it demands engagement on several levels. She compared the experience to reading a poem or a philosophical text. She noted that people don't slow down anymore, which makes the need for such complex art more relevant. The exhibition remains open to the public at 4735 McPherson until December 19.