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Spirit of artist Mark C. Clapham lives on
By Maggie Gutierrez
Art Talk
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January 20, 2012
The Courier
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 Many continue to celebrate and remember Mark Clapham, whose physical
presence left the earth Jan. 12, but whose spirit remains in the hearts of those whose lives
he touched, and in the enduring bronze sculptures, murals, paintings and illustrations he created over four decades of serious artistic endeavor.
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Because of his remarkable legacy of art work, some of which was acknowledged by his home state in an alternate Texas State Artist Award (1991-92), and because he called Conroe his “hometown,” we dedicate this
Art Talk column to a man who was complex and yet simple, internationally known and yet humble; whose verbal voice was soft, but whose artistic voice resounded.
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Celebrating Conroe/Montgomery County
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A resident for some 40 years, Mark loved Conroe and when possible he shared that affection via his most accomplished form of expression – his artwork. Many know of the 70-foot mural, “Montgomery County Walkway
Through Time,” the mural which spans Texas 105 in downtown Conroe. Others know of his 16-foot mural (title not found) painted on a wall of the lobby of the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office at 1 Criminal Justice Drive in Conroe.
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 Many know of his black granite etching paying tribute to a former area resident, Dr. Charles Stewart,
(designer of the Texas flag), which was Mark’s contribution to the 2009 Conroe Art Bench project. That bench sits on the sidewalk of N. Main Street, across from the Montgomery County courthouse. A painting, “Sixteen Symbols of Texas,” (private collection)
originally commissioned as a cover for an area telephone directory, continues to be available for viewing on the website of the Honorable Kevin Brady, Texas State Representative, 8th District, as part of the congressman’s “Just for Kids” interactive
project. (see www.house.gov/brady/students).
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Celebrating his Alma Mater
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Mark loved his alma mater, the University of Houston, and completed over 80 bronze sculptures and many other art works for the school. His life-size bronze sculpture of a cougar (the school’s mascot) can be seen on the University
of Houston campus, near Holman Street (see the university’s map of campus artwork at www.uh.edu/uh-collection/publicartguide.pdf.
The University of Houston acknowledged Mark with the John B. Van Ness Distinguished Alumni Award.
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Conroe Art League
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Because he touched the lives of so many of its member artists, and because Mark’s deteriorating health prevented him from attending the Nov. 17 opening of the league’s Gallery at the Madeley Building, the Conroe Art League offered
the Gallery as a place to continue celebrating Mark’s life following his funeral services Jan. 16. While many attendees were awed at the two paintings exhibited, a portfolio display of photos of some of Mark’s artwork left attendees breathless. While even
that catalogue did not contain photos of all his artwork, it contained photos of a staggering volume of artwork, few had ever seen in one collection.
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World Class Teachers/Mentors
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It should come as no surprise that such an accomplished artist like Mark cited as most influential in his artistic development, four internationally acclaimed artists. Beginning with his mother, Wanda Clapham, an internationally
celebrated porcelain artist, Mark was encouraged from an early age to pursue his artistic talents. It was his mother who learned of a potential teacher, and took Mark at age seventeen to Taos, New Mexico to learn sculpturing skills from the world renowned
Texas/New Mexico painter, sculptor and author, A. Kelly Pruitt. With no call ahead, Mark and his mother arrived at Mr. Pruitt’s Taos studio, and Mark was accepted for individual sculpture tutoring by Mr. Pruitt on the spot. Mr. Pruitt remained a friend of
Mark’s until his death in 2009.
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Mark also cited New Mexico/Texas painter, Freemont Ellis, founder of “Los Cinco Pintores,” (a prominent New Mexico artist group) for his guidance and impact on Mark’s painting. A look at Mark’s handling of light in his painting,
“God’s Only Glory,” (private collection) and a early painting by Freemont Ellis “Valley of the Gods,” in the El Paso Museum of Art (and reproduced in DICTIONARY OF TEXAS ARTISTS 1800-1945, published by Texas A&M, in 1958) might suggest some of Mr. Ellis’
influence on Mark’s art work.
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Referring to him as his “mentor,” Mark credited world-class Texas painter and University of Houston professor, Bob Wygant, as most important in helping him master the techniques of illustration. Some of what he learned from Bob
Wygant can be seen in Mark’s painting, “The Barkeep Rules,” (private collection) a photo of which was shared at his memorial services on Jan. 16.
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Native American Heritage
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Mark’s Chickasaw heritage, through his mother, informed and guided much of his painting and sculptural tributes to Native Americans. One of countless artworks celebrating Native Americans is the painting, “Crow Chief Plenty
Coups,” (private collection) shared with friends and family at Mark’s memorial services. This painting depicts a Crow Indian chief standing alone, holding the American flag. A comment perhaps on the times, not missed by Mark, this Crow Chief was the only
Native American invited to the Nov. 11, 1932 dedication of what was then called the “Tomb of the Unknown Soldier,” at Arlington National Cemetery. Another powerful painting includes a skull in foreground, a Teton Sioux (formerly Lakota) Chief in middle
ground with a bull buffalo encircled in the background. This painting is titled, “The Legend Days are Over,” (private collection). With strong images of key Native American symbols, the painting represents the death of the relationship between, and the
dependence of the Lakotas on, the buffalo.
Pictured is a painting by Mark Clapham (private collection) called "Crow Chief Plenty Coups." It refers to the Nov. 11, 1932, when Crow Chief was invited to represent all Native Americans at the dedication of
then titled, "Tomb of the Unknown Soldier." At the time of the dedication, the granite tomb paid tribute to veterans of World War I.
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Encouraging Emerging Texas Artists
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For 38 years, Mark served as senior judge for the School Art Program competition of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, and was acknowledged in 2010 with their Lifetime Achievement Award. The School Art Program, which began in
1964, has more than 300,000 entries each year. Participants range from Pre-K through 12th grade. The young entrants must submit an original art project based on Western culture, history or heritage. The winning artwork is auctioned in part for
scholarships. (see www.hlsr.com)
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Another Artist for Whom Artifice Held No Appeal For reasons known only to Mark, he was not comfortable in a large social gathering. While history on a range of subjects including military, American presidential, American west,
Native Americans, the visual arts, and the achievements of Texas football teams, especially the University of Houston team, were topics he could be drawn into in a small gathering or one-to-one, Mark, by all accounts eschewed talking about his
accomplishments or making “small talk.” Until only the past couple of years, Mark employed an agent to promote his artwork. If a description of one of Mark’s teachers, A. Kelly Pruitt, by Tom Netherland (Bristol Herald Courier, Jan. 24, 2008) “an artist
for whom artifice holds absolutely no appeal,” is accurate, perhaps that is why Mark, also an artist for whom artifice held no appeal, remained friends for so long. (see quote by Tom Netherland in “Arts Magazine,” at
www.artsmagazine.info.articles)
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Personal Tributes
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Below are tributes from a few members of the Conroe area art community who wished to publicly pay tribute to Mark Clapham, an artistic giant, a Conroe resident and a friend:
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Joe and Jean Fleshner
(owners of The Linda Watson Gallery)
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“It’s time to pause from the Gallery’s normal Art Talk information for remembering Mark Clapham. It’s with a very heavy heart that “The Conroe Community Art World” announces that a pillar and cornerstone of the visual arts, Mark
Clapham, died last week. His terrific sense of humor and dedication to his profession was unprecedented. We might accept his challenge to each of us to strive to do our best in each of our daily walks.
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As Mark loosened up, it became clear that he was not only a talented multi-media artist, but also an avid history buff who researched his details. Mark’s bronze sculpture, “The Hawk’n Whar True But Slow” (private collection) is a
classic example of his passion for having the minor and major details correct. The oil painting, “Warrior” (private collection) though small in size, as someone said last week, is ‘almost three dimensional.’ The feather, the bead work, the throat
medallion had to be exact. Every detail had to be right before it was finished and available to the public.
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It was a privilege to know a person who took the time, care and concern about each item to be correct and authentic. Mark, you will be missed.
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As long as we all can enjoy and marvel over your works, our spirit will be better. Thank you, Mark for being a friend and yourself.”
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Cathy Cook |
(owner, Gallery Off the Square Thomas Kinkade)
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“I met Mark a couple of months after I first opened my gallery through Conroe gallery owner, Joe Fleshner and Conroe-based artist, Joe Kolb. Mark was an amazing artist, but what is even more, was that he was so modest. He was the
most down-to-earth-artist that I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. Just an incredibly sweet man. He will be sorely missed.”
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Theresa Thornhill
(Artist; President, Conroe Art League; VP,Conroe Live, Inc)“I first heard of Mark Clapham just a few years ago when Maggie Gutierrez arranged a couple of short tours of his studio. The artists and teachers who went
on that tour had glowing remarks about both the art and the man. My interest was piqued and at the next artist reception, Maggie introduced us to each other. I quickly discovered that Mark was an extremely humble person who went very quietly about his
business. His many honors, awards and accomplishments were never brought up in casual conversations. As impressive as his accolades were, you didn’t need to know any of that. Once you found yourself standing in front of one of his paintings or sculptures,
his remarkable talent and skill were obvious. I feel honored to have spent time with him and to have known such an artist. The art community of Conroe has lost a jewel but will forever be touched by his contributions.”
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Lois Blackburne |
(Artist; teacher; lifelong friend)
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“He left the world a huge piece of himself and, to say he made his MARK on the world, is an understatement!”
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Maggie Gutierrez is a local artist and member of the Conroe Art League. She may be reached at GGutmarina@aol.com |
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