Larry Festa, Curatorial Intern
If you’re a devout fan of rock music, from the Rolling Stones to The Beatles, or Soundgarden and Pearl Jam, you’ve likely seen posters for their acts drawn and printed by American printmaking legend, Chuck Sperry. A native of Dayton, Ohio, Sperry produces his eye-catching works in the historic Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco. He develops silkscreen prints out of Oakland through his studio, Hangar 18. Countless of Sperry’s works, mostly prints and drawings, are part of the FWMoA’s permanent collection.
Now on View in the Dr. Calvin H. and Mary Tower English Gallery, Chuck Sperry: Archetypes marks the FWMoA’s third large scale, public facing collaboration with the printmaking master, and displays over 100 of Sperry’s works. This includes 98 screenprints on wood panels, 31 preliminary black and white drawings, and, uniquely, a sizeable wool tapestry, all displayed through August 9th. The exhibition has been curated by Josef Zimmerman, the FWMoA’s Technical Director and Curator of Contemporary Art. Every displayed piece is now also part of the FWMoA’s permanent collection.
The works displayed in Archetypes places an emphasis on the nature of the self, pulling inspiration from not only Greek mythology and history, but also the foundational psychoanalytic philosophy of Carl G. Jung. Sperry’s depictions of Greek figures follow what he calls a mythic cycle, as they are born out of the heavenly realm of abstract idealism before undergoing transformation to function in concrete physical form in a proverbial garden on Earth; the garden acting as a kind of communal utopian experiment. This process that the depicted women of Greek myth navigate is made clearer when contextualized through analytical psychology. Jung proposed the idea of “archetypes” as abstract forms of the self not discernable through the human psyche, which we can only know insofar as that they exist and work as entities reaching beyond individuals in time and space. In this way, Sperry’s latest exhibition at FWMoA comes to represent not only the realization of archetypes and the manifestation of abstract elements of humanity, but, in his own words, as representing the various archetypes at play in the over 30 years of his career as an American printmaker.
Much of Archetypes’ broader purpose is expressed through the 98 screenprints on display throughout the gallery, all produced on oak or birch panels, and occasionally supported by acrylic. The women of Greek myth depicted in the displayed prints in Archetypes partially represent the work of anthropologist Jane Ellen Harrison, who proposed the existence of a repressed, prehistorical, woman-centered civilization that worshipped the Earth as a female deity in ancient Greece. Sperry’s prints unite Harrison’s anthropology with Jungian psychology and the idea of the “mythic cycle” to represent Greek figures in a wholly unique way, and explore how classical notions of equality and freedom within Greek society coexist with our true selves today. Sperry’s prints also speak to his inspirations from within the art world, including styles and eras such as Secessionism and Art Nouveau, alongside the radical psychedelia of the 1960s and rebellious urban works of activists such as Black Panther artist Emory Douglas. The floral patterns visible on nearly every displayed print originate from 19th-century English artist and activist William Morris, who created floral wallpapers, intended to allow art to be accessible for anyone.
Among these prints are a select few that differ from the majority of the Greek-inspired floral portraits, including a portrait of psychedelic poster designer Rick Griffin, and a dark and moody night time piece titled “Who Watches the Watchers (Transendence)”.
Also displayed are a series of 31 ink drawings, which provide a view into Sperry’s process of creating prints. Sperry aims to perfect these ink drawings, ensuring that any unintentional markings are ultimately integrated into the full design. This is ensured not only through physical discipline, with steady hands and breath control, but also the right tools. Sperry personally prefers number 2 Windsor and Newton fine sable brushes with black India ink, laid onto Strathmore Bristol smooth surface paper. Initially, Sperry produces pencil drawings that are then enlarged digitally prior to being traced onto Bristol paper for inking. Sperry treats this process as one that is meditative and rhythmic, allowing his hands to flow and move in an improvisational manner.
Most unique among what’s on display in the exhibition is a large wool tapestry titled “Liberty,” made in collaboration with Abraham Flores, Antonio Flores, Pedro Ibarra Cazares, and master dyer Rafael Morquecho, all of Taller Mexicano de Gobelinos. Sperry first engaged with this group during the development of two triptychs in January of 2018, and has collaborated frequently since; their collaborative tapestries were also on display at the FWMoA’s 2018 exhibition, All Access: Exploring Humanism in the Art of Chuck Sperry. Developed since February of 2025, Sperry says that Liberty represents the tumultuous change and struggle within democratic institutions in the twenty-first century. The piece was inspired in part due to political controversy, as Sperry felt that creating the piece in collaboration with Mexican artists in the midst of rising ICE raids functioned as an “act of revolt.”
To see these works and others in Chuck Sperry: Archetypes, plan your visit to FWMoA before August 9!