Don Van Vliet

Don Van Vliet may be best known for the music he recorded as Captain Beefheart from the 1960s to the early '80s. After retiring his persona in 1982, however, the legendary rock 'n' roll troubadour turned full-time to painting. The works in this exhibition—notably, the first since Van Vliet’s death in 2010—span three decades, from the late '60s to the late '90s, revealing new facets of the artist's once-in-a-generation talent.

From Michael Werner:

Drawing on the visceral power of mid-century New York School abstraction as well late twentieth century European painting, Van Vliet embellishes those legacies with a twist of terror and weirdness, his own brand of American surrealism.