VISUAL MUSIC

large textured oil paintings, large acrylic tapestries, ink on paper, and conte’ drawings

Canvas and Paper feature a selection of paintings and drawings from the studio of Edward Navone (1937-2024) that spans several decades of his artistic practice. Navone was Professor of Art at Washburn University from 1964 through 2024. He was an authority on Renaissance and classical art, serving as an avid tour guide for students. He led trips throughout Europe and lectured on the most enduring artists and artwork of the ages. Many students who studied with Navone recall his masterful approach to lecturing and demonstrating techniques in the classroom. He would inspire many to pursue their own artistic careers.

Edward Navone was a prodigious artist, creating hundreds of large painted canvases and thousands of drawings and sketches that suggest he was driven to create. His sketch books are filled with page after page of studies, ideas, notations, and lists. They leave one to wonder at the references found there and what was going through his mind as he sketched automobiles, airplanes, hands, the figure, and abstract shapes again and again. For Navone, art was not a career, he cared little about promoting his artwork to others. He was the consummate teacher and when not in the classroom he was in his studio, paintbrush, pen, or pencil in hand exploring and testing his ideas.

The drawings and paintings presented in Canvas and Paper provide a look into the impulses that informed Navone’s artwork and lays the groundwork for further exploration of his practice.