The Hilbert Museum of California Art invites art lovers to discover the extraordinary world of acclaimed artist Timothy J. Clark through the exhibition, Timothy J. Clark: Going Places, now on view through March 8th, 2025.
Clark, celebrated for redefining watercolour, merges tradition and innovation to create works that transform everyday scenes into visual symphonies of colour and light. From the quiet dignity of a Mexican church to the bustling energy of a European market square, each painting provides a window into our shared humanity. This exhibition offers visitors an immersive experience into the world of an artist who honours tradition while pushing boundaries.
Depth
Clark’s work exemplifies technical brilliance and emotional depth. His pieces – created using hand-ground pigments, archival-quality paper, and unconventional tools such as feather quills and Buddhist candles – echo the mastery of Turner and Sargent yet his style remains distinctly his own, a blend of technical precision and emotional depth.
His urban nightscapes and interior scenes pulse with energy, capturing fleeting moments with breathtaking clarity. One critic from El País described his nightscape of Guadalupe as “a watercolour that breathes in the sunset.”
Known for his expressive interiors, urban landscapes, portraits and figures, Clark’s watercolors, oils and drawings are in over twenty museum collections, including the permanent collections at the Smithsonian/National Portrait Gallery and the Library of Congress Works on Paper in Washington D.C.; the Museum of the City of New York; the Hispanic Society Museum in New York; the Butler Museum of American Art in Youngstown, Ohio; Farnsworth Art Museum, in Rockland, Maine; and the Arkansas Art Center in Little Rock. A California native and graduate of the Chouinard Art Institute and the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts). Clark has studios in Capistrano Beach, California, New York City, and West Bath, Maine.
Passion
Every artist has a moment that ignites their passion. For Clark, it happened in 1961 on a train trip to Chicago when he encountered the grandeur of Los Angeles’ Union Station. The station’s soaring ceilings and ambient light captivated him, seeding an obsession with how architecture can evoke both awe and intimacy. This fascination with space and light has informed his work for decades, especially in his depictions of churches and civic spaces.
Art historian Leo O’Donovan, S.J., likens Clark’s manipulation of light to the metaphysical vision of Abbot Suger, the 12th-century architect credited with pioneering Gothic architecture. His journeys across Europe, Mexico, and Asia have further expanded his vision. His notable exhibitions include Bellosguardo at the Bowers Museum and, most recently, American Travelers at the Hispanic Society Museum in New York City, where his work hung alongside masterpieces by El Greco and Goya – an experience both humbling and affirming.
Clark’s portraits are equally celebrated, capturing not only the likeness of his subjects but also their spirit and narratives. From African American jazz legends like Jack McVea and Teddy Buckner to trailblazing artist Faith Ringgold, his work resonates across cultural and generational lines, emphasising the human story behind each subject.
With over sixty works housed in esteemed collections such as the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery and the Library of Congress, Clark’s artistic legacy is firmly established. Describing his artistic philosophy, he explains: “I have endeavoured to paint with enough modernism to unsettle the unadventurous yet keep enough of the figurative to annoy the avant-garde.”
His watercolours are a testament to the meticulous craft and spontaneous inspiration that define great art.
Exhibition Details:
Dates: Now through March 8th, 2025
Location: Hilbert Museum of California Art, 167 North Atchison Street, Orange, California
Hours: Tuesday – Saturday, 10 AM to 5 PM
Admission: Free
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