'Seated Nude on a Yellow Chair' by Robert Wilbert, 1974, Detroit, Michigan, American Modernist

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Description

Signed lower right, 'Wilbert' for Robert Wilbert (American, 1929-2016) and dated 1974.
Provenance:
Donald Morris Gallery, Inc., Detroit, Michigan;
Private … Read more Signed lower right, 'Wilbert' for Robert Wilbert (American, 1929-2016) and dated 1974.
Provenance:
Donald Morris Gallery, Inc., Detroit, Michigan;
Private collection, Miami Beach, Florida.

Robert Wilbert was born in Chicago and later relocated to Detroit, where he taught painting at Wayne State University for 38 years. He exhibited widely and with success and gained recognition as an influential figure within Detroit's Cass Corridor, alongside artists such as Ellen Phelan, Gordon Newton, and Nancy Mitchnick.

Wilbert attended the University of Illinois, where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts (1951) and Masters of Fine Arts (1954). Before teaching at Wayne State University, Wilbert also taught at Flint Institute of the Arts in Michigan. He was commissioned by the state of Michigan to design the first commemorative state postage stamp, honoring the 150th anniversary of Michigan statehood.

Wilbert's work is part of the permanent collection at the Detroit Institute of Arts and is also held in the Saginaw Museum in Michigan, the South Bend Art Center in Indiana, the Kalanazoo Art Center (Michigan), Macomb County Community College, the City of Warren (Michigan), and Wayne State University. Wilbert was the recipient of numerous awards, including the 4th Biennial Michigan Regional Award from the South Bend Art Center (1966) and the Werbe Award from the 57th Exhibition of Michigan Artists at the Detroit Institute of Art (1969).

Exhibition History:
American Watercolors, Drawings and Prints, MMA (1952); Butler IA 25th Midyear Anniversary (1960); Philadelphia Academy of Fine Arts 156th Anniversary (1961); Donal Morris Gallery, Detroit (1962-1972, 4 solos); A Survey of Contemporary Art, J.B. Speed Art Museum, Louisville, Kentucky (1965); Donald Morris Gallery, Detroit (1970s).

Reference:
Who Was Who in American Art 1564-1975: 400 Years of Artists in America, Peter Hastings Falk, Sound View Press 1999, Vol. 3, p. 3563-3564; Bakker, Dirk (2011-07-01). Robert Wilbert: Ennobling the Ordinary. Gere Baskin (ed.). Royal Oak, Mich.: Wayne State University Press; et al. See less