Cecil Touchon: The Cuernavaca Papers

William Campbell Gallery is thrilled to announce the upcoming exhibition, Cecil Touchon: The Cuernavaca Papers. This extraordinary exhibition showcases a brand new collection of artwork by Cecil Touchon, inspired by his years in Cuernavaca, Mexico. The opening is scheduled for November 16, 2023, from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM, at 4935 Byers Avenue, Fort Worth, Texas. 

The Cuernavaca Papers features 25 new small works and larger paintings. The series is set apart from the artist’s more recent work by a robust infusion of color. After several years of producing work predominantly in rich tones of reds, blues, and blacks against a lighter background. Touchon’s new collages embrace greens, yellows, and various shades of pink and orange inspired by the vivid ephemera from the Cuernavaca region. The work features innovative assemblage of the repurposed paper materials’ stylized lettering and text, creating captivating optical illusions across the picture plane. 

Touchon’s artistic journey predominantly centers around collage-based paintings and works on paper. The Cuernavaca Papers are part of his larger, ongoing series called Post Dogmatist Paintings (PDP) which champions a free-flowing, open approach to abstract art by rejecting rigid conventions and embracing creative experimentation. His work is characterized by the intricate layering of found materials, torn paper, and a harmonious interplay of color and form that invites viewers to contemplate the beauty of abstraction.

Cecil Touchon began his artistic career with a BFA from the University of Texas at Arlington and continued to refine his craft at the University of North Texas and St. Louis Community College at Florissant Valley in St. Louis, Missouri. Since his debut in the art world in 1984, he has exhibited his work in over 50 solo exhibitions and numerous group exhibitions. His artistic legacy is proudly preserved in prominent collections, including the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York NY; the MoMA Library; Museu Brasileiro da Escultura, São Paulo, Brazil; Studio One, New York, NY; Fogg Museum of Art Archive, Cambridge, MA; Chicago Art Institute, Chicago, IL; and the Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, CA, among others.