Paintings & Drawings

Below left: Violin decorated for the "Art of Note"(WYSO)
Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestra fundraiser 2008.
Below right: Charles Munch

Charles Munch lives on a hill top near Lone Rock, among the big hills of southwestern Wisconsin.  This is a remote, densely wooded, sparsely populated part of the state. 

Charles's brightly colored paintings reflect the surrounding landscape-- as well as the animals, both wild and domestic, that inhabit it.  His household includes four cats and a beagle-mix hound.  Deer and smaller animals are abundant in the surrounding woods.  Much of his work investigates the question of how humans fit into the rest of the natural world.  He wonders, "Are  we part of nature, or just outside observers?"

Born in St.Louis, trained in New York and Portland, Oregon, Charles has lived in Wisconsin for thirty years.  His distinctive semi-abstract style emerged here around 1980 in response to Wisconsin's  light and landscape.  His paintings have been exhibited in twenty solo shows in the midwest and on both coasts.  The depth of imagination has been recognized in three elaborately installed museum exhibitions devoted to his work in Madison, Milwaukee, and Chicago.

Charles Munch

Charles Munch - 2011

I live in the Driftless area of southwestern Wisconsin, high on a hill surrounded by hundreds of acres of woods and abandoned farm fields. Animals, both wild and domestic, are my nearest neighbors and most frequent visitors. Deer, coyotes, raccoons, rabbits, possums, and birds of every size wander or fly past my studio day and night.

Their presence has often led me to meditate on humans' relationship with animals. Are we friends or enemies? Do they think about us? Is wild or tame better? Can we co-exist peacefully?

Such thoughts have inspired paintings that I sometimes think of as Nature Icons images conducive to meditation on questions that may have no answer but are worth exploring. As I paint, these questions guide my reflections, which I hope are later shared by viewers of the paintings. I believe that the more deeply we explore our relationship with other animals and the rest of the natural world, the healthier the world will be.

I use bright, clear colors and simplified shapes, attempting to present the subject in the plainest terms possible. I eliminate extraneous details, allowing room for the expression of emotion through the abstract elements of color, line, and shape. Forms that at first may be barely delineated are brought to pulsing life through vibrant color relationships and dynamic compositions. The goal is to create images which are even truer to my vision of nature than a realistic painting could be.

Charles Munch

Charles Munch - 2011

BORN

St. Louis, Missouri

EDUCATION

Portland Museum School, Portland, Oregon; 1965-66
New York Studio School of Drawing, Painting, and Sculpture, New York City; 1966-67
Reed College, Portland Oregon; Bachelor of Arts Degree, Phi Beta Kappa; 1963-65, 1967-68

SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2009 Charles Munch: Watching Wildlife, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
2009 Charles Munch: Dreaming in Color, Jura Silverman Gallery, Spring Green, WI
2008 Charles Munch, Paine Art Center, Oshkosh, Wisconsin
2007 Charles Munch: Dreaming In Color, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
2006 Charles Munch: Dreaming In Color ( Retrospective ), Fairfield Center for Contemporary Art,
Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin
2005 Charles Munch: Dangerous Companions, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
2003 Charles Munch: Recent Work, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
2001 Charles Munch: Paintings, Well Street Art Company, Fairbanks, AK
2001 Charles Munch: New Paintings, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
2000 Charles Munch: Paintings, Perimeter Gallery, Chicago, Illinois
1999 Charles Munch: Dream Time, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1997 Two Sides of Charles Munch, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1996 Charles Munch: Organic Abstractions, Wisconsin Academy Gallery, Madison, Wisconsin
1995 Charles Munch: Tame/Wild, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1994 Charles Munch: Paintings & Cutouts, Grace Chosy Gallery, Madison, Wisconsin
1993 Charles Munch: Paintings & Cutouts, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1993 Charles Munch: Paintings & Cutouts, Perimeter Gallery, Chicago, Illinois
1992 Charles Munch: Fear & Desire (an installation), Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago, Illinois
1992 Charles Munch: New Work, Perimeter Gallery, Chicago, Illinois
1991 BORDERLAND: Paintings by Charles Munch (an installation), Milwaukee Art Museum,
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1990 Charles Munch: Paintings, Natasha Nicholson Works of Art, Madison, Wisconsin
1988 Charles Munch Paintings: Landscapes & Figures, Natasha Nicholson Works of Art, Madison Wisconsin
1987 Outer/Inner Sanctum: Paintings by Charles Munch (an installation), Madison Art Center,
Madison, Wisconsin
1985 Charles Munch Recent Paintings, Ruth Siegel Ltd, New York, New York
1983 Charles Munch, Rahr West Museum, Manitowoc, Wisconsin
1976 Paintings by Charles Munch, Oshkosh Public Museum, Oshkosh, Wisconsin

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2011 Randall Berndt & Charles Munch, Grace Chosy Gallery, Madison, WI
2010 Medium is the Message, Peninsula School of Art, Fish Creek, WI
2010 Forward: A Survey of Wisconsin Art Now, Charles Allis Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI
2010 Apple Pie: Symbols of Americana, Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, Madison, WI
2009 Summer In Wisconsin, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
2009 High Honors: An Exhibition of Artwork by the 2008 Wisconsin Arts Board Visual Arts Fellows, James Watrous Gallery, Madison, WI
2008 Human/Nature: Recent Paintings by Randall Berndt and Charles Munch, Grace Chosy Gallery, Madison, Wisconsin
2008 20th Anniversary Celebration Exhibition, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
2007 Perfectly Natural. H. F. Johnson Gallery, Carthage College, Kenosha, Wisconsin
2006 Artists Choose Artists Choose Artists, The Painting Center, New York, New York
2006 Up North: Imaging Northwoods Culture & Mythology, West Bend Art Museum, West Bend, Wisconsin
2006 Randall Berndt & Charles Munch: Wild Places, Sharon Lynn Wilson Art Center, Brookfield, Wisconsin
2005 Out of the Woods: Recent Paintings & Drawings by Randall Berndt and Charles Munch, Grace Chosy Gallery, Madison, WIsconsin
2005 Inner Visions: 4 Painters' Nature Narratives, New Visions Gallery, Marshfield, Wisconsin
2005 Wild Color, Florida Gulf Coast University, Fort Myers, Florida
2004 A Decade of Art, James Watrous Gallery of the Wisconsin Academy, Madison, Wisconsin
2003 Signs & Testimonials, Reed College, Portland, Oregon
2003 Fire Works: Recent Paintings by Charles Munch & Randall Berndt, Grace Chosy Gallery, Madison, Wisconsin
2002 Visions of Water, Wisconsin Academy Gallery, Madison, Wisconsin
2001 Go Figure, Eklektikos Gallery, Washington, DC
2001 Parallel Worlds: Paintings by Charles Munch & Randall Berndt, Grace Chosy Gallery, Madison, Wisconsin
2000 Small Celebrations, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
2000 Singular Visions, Ten Wisconsin Painters at the Academy, Madison Wisconsin
1999 Wisconsin Painting & Sculpture from the Permanent Collection, Milwaukee Art Museum
1998 Day & Night: Recent Paintings by Charles Munch & Randall Berndt, Grace Chosy Gallery, Madison, Wisconsin
1998 Testing the Waters, Perimeter Gallery, Chicago, Illinois
1997 Wisconsin Art Since 1990, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1997 Recent Acquisitions, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1996 Wisconsin Dreams: Recent Paintings by Charles Munch & Randall Berndt, Grace Chosy Gallery, Madison, Wisconsin
1993 Dreams, Hopes, Fears, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1992 Still Lifes - Paintings & Sculpture, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1990 Wisconsin Triennial, Madison Art Center, Madison, Wisconsin
1990 A Decade Downtown, Madison Art Center, Madison, Wisconsin
1989 Charles Munch, Jack Hooper & Jeff Starr, Davidson Galleries, Seattle, Washington
1989 Installations, Natasha Nicholson Works of Art, Madison, Wisconsin
1988 Individuals: New Art from Wisconsin, Milwaukee Art Museum at 333 Gallery, Chicago, Illinois
1988 James Kielkopf and Charles Munch, Thomas Barry Fine Arts, Minneapolis, Minnesota
1988 Endangered Species, Klein Gallery, Chicago, Illinois
1987 Wisconsin Triennial, Madison Art Center, Madison, Wisconsin
1985 Alumni Exhibition, New York Studio School of Drawing, Painting & Sculpture, New York, NY
1985 Family Dramas, N.A.M.E. Gallery, Chicago, Illinois
1984 Wisconsin Directions 4, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1984 Charles Munch & John Whalley: Selections from the Alfred Bader Collection, Krannert Gallery, Purdue University, Lafayette, Indiana
1983 Rambunctious, Siegel Contemporary Art, New York, New York
1983 Nocturne, Siegel Contemporary Art, New York, New York
1983 Installation of Recent Works by Anne Abrons, Charles Munch, David Schirm, and Maria Scotti, Siegel Contemporary Art, New York, New York
1982 Ten Variations on a Theme (The Human Figure), Siegel Contemporary Art, New York, New York
1982 Wisconsin Biennial, Madison Art Center, Madison, Wisconsin
1982 Painterly Realism, Rahr West Museum, Manitowoc, Wisconsin
1978 Wisconsin 78 (Best of Show Award), University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, Stevens Point WI
1978 Wisconsin Directions 2, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1977 Contemporary Figurative Painting in the Midwest, Madison Art Center, Madison, Wisconsin
1975 Wisconsin Directions, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1973 58th Wisconsin Painters & Sculptors Exhibition, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

2008 “Munch Receives Art Fellowship,” Richland Observer, Richland Center, WI April 17, 2008
2008 Sarah Owen, “A Vibrant Wilderness,” The Northwestern, Oshkosh, Wisconsin, January 18, 2008
2007 Charles Munch, “Online Artist’s Journal,” www.thepaine.org, Paine Art Center, Oshkosh, Wisconsin
2007 Bill Robbins, “Art in Nature,” Kenosha News, Kenosha, WI, September 14, 2007
2007 Fred Camper, “Perfectly Natural,” H. F. Johnson Gallery, Carthage College, Kenosha, Wisconsin
2006 Linda Falkenstein, “Beautiful Dreamer,” Isthmus, Madison, WI, December 8, 2006
2006 Dawn Kiefer, “Munch’s Paintings Reflect Alternate View,” Richland Observer, Richland Center, WI, November 9, 2006
2006 Elizabeth Meissner, “Where Do You Draw the Line on Art?”, Door County Advocate, Sturgeon Bay
2006 “Munch Retrospective at Fairfield Center,”Door County Advocate, Sturgeon Bay, WI September 20, 2006
2006 “Jody Clowes & Richard Ely, Charles Munch, Dreaming In Color: Paintings 1971-2006, Fairfield Center & Prairie Oaks Press
2006 Jeff Filipiak, “Up North: A Review”, Susceptible to Images (on the Web), August 28, 2006
2006 Whitney Taylor, “Northern Exposure,” MKE, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, August 17, 2006
2006 Mary Louise Schumacher, “An Up North State of Mind.” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, August 11, 206
2005 "A Look at the Natural World," Marshfield News- Herald, Marshfield, Wisconsin, January 20, 2005
2004 Berndt & Glowacki, "The Grand Opening," Wisconsin Academy Review, Madison, Wisconsin, Fall 2004
2004 Chris Martell, "Art for Culture," Wisconsin State Journal, Madison, Wisconsin, February 23, 2004
2003 "Signs & Testimonials," Reed (magazine), Portland, Oregon, August, 2003
2003 James Auer, “Small Thoughts and Original Visions,” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, February 26, 2003
2002 Randall Berndt, “Visions of Water,”, Wisconsin Academy Review, Madison, WI, Fall 2002
2002 Jacob Stockinger, “APT Showcases Original Munch Work,” Capitol Times, Madison, WI, June 20
2002 James Auer, “Art by Committee Produces Signature Piece,” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee, WI, May 15, 2002
2001 Joanne Trestrail, “Wisconsin: The Spirit of America,” Harry N. Abrams, New York, NY
2001 Robert Cozzolino, “Nature in Concert,” Isthmus, Madison, WI, June 15
2001 T. Hall, “Charles Munch at the Well Street Art Company,” The Beat, Fairbanks, AK, September 2001
2001 James Auer, "Munch Show Keeps You Wondering," Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, March 14, 2001
2000 Jacob Stockinger, “Masters of Their Craft,” Capitol Times, Madison, WI, July 7
2000 Glen Adamson, Chris Byrne, et al., “Beautiful Things”, Guild Publishing, Madison, WI
1998 Jacob Stockinger, "Joint Exhibit Artists like Night and Day," Capital Times, Madison, Wisconsin,
November 4, 1998
1997 New American Paintings, Wellesley, Massachusetts, August, 1997
1997 Auer, James, "2 Artists Present Stylized Fantasies," Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, June 11, 1997
1996 Clowes, Jody, "Interior Landscapes," Isthmus, Madison, Wisconsin, September 20, 1996
1996 Lynch, Kevin, "Wisconsin Dreams," Capital Times, Madison, Wisconsin, June 12, 1996
1995 Lynch, Kevin, "Selling Art: Bleak Picture," Capital Times, Madison, Wisconsin, April 27, 1995
1995 Paine, Janice T., "Munch, Skoczek Unafraid to Make Beautiful Art," Milwaukee Sentinel, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, March 31, 1995
1994 Simms, Pat, "Art Poster Gets National TV Time," Wisconsin State Journal, Madison, Wisconsin,
August 1, 1994
1994 Lynch, Kevin, "Big Sky Culture," Capital Times, Madison, Wisconsin, July 28, 1994
1994 Blocker, Susan, "Area Artist Draws the Line," Wisconsin State Journal, Madison, Wisconsin,
February 4, 1994
1993 Paine, Janice T., "Munch's Art Bold, Enchanting," Milwaukee Sentinel, August 6, 1993
1992 Morrison, Mandy, "The Invisible Frame," Chicago Reader, Chicago, Illinois, November 6, 1992
1992 Shimon, J. and Lindemann, J., "The Enigmatic Nature of Charles Munch," Art Muscle, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, August/September, 1992
1991 Kapelke, Steven, "Charles Munch," New Art Examiner, Chicago, Illinois, June, 1991
1991 Auer, James, "A Fascinating Journey through the 'Borderland'," Milwaukee Journal, March 3, 1991
1991 Paine, Janice T., "'Borderland' Explores Edge of Abstraction," Milwaukee Sentinel, Feb. 1, 1991
1991 Kingsbury, Martha, BORDERLAND: Paintings by Charles Munch, February, 1991, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1990 Paine, Janice T., "Many Currents Flow in Triennial," Milwaukee Sentinel, September 21, 1990
1989 Stevens, Mitchell, "Individuals: New Art from Wisconsin," New Art Examiner, January, 1989
1987 Dyer, Chris, "Two Bear Valley Artists Selected for Wisconsin Triennial Show," Home News, Spring Green, Wisconsin, October 7, 1987
1987 "Critics' Choice," Isthmus, Madison, Wisconsin, September 11, 1987
1987 Jensen, Dean, "Artist Creates Own Sanctum," Milwaukee Sentinel, August 7, 1987
1984 Bowman, Russell, Wisconsin Directions 4, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1984
1983 "New Exhibit at Rahr-West," Herald-Times-Reporter, Manitowoc, Wisconsin, September 2, 1983
1982 Westfall, Stephen, "Ten Variations on a Theme," Arts, October 1982
1982 Russell, John, "Current Shows of Interest," The New York Times, July 2, 1982
1982 Auer, James, "Jolts of the New in Madison," Milwaukee Journal, June 13, 1982
1982 Madison Art Center, 1982 Wisconsin Biennial, Madison, Wisconsin, May, 1982
1981 Ph. Orth Company, The Orth Art Collection, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, February, 1981
1978 "Sturgeon Bay Artist Wins $500 Prize for Painting," Milwaukee Journal, October 29, 1978
1978 "Munch Painting Receives Laurels," Door County Advocate, October 24, 1978
1978 University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, Wisconsin '78, Stevens Point, Wisconsin, October, 1978
1978 Danoff, I. Michael, Wisconsin Directions 2: Here & Now, Milwaukee Art Museum, October, 1978
1978 Auer, James, "State Art Takes Many Pathways," Milwaukee Journal, October 15, 1978
1978 Jensen, Dean, "'Compelling' Describes 'Wisconsin Directions 2'," Milwaukee Sentinel, October 13
1977 Madison Art Center, Contemporary Figurative Painting in the Midwest, Madison WI, February
1976 Auer, James, "Gallery Gazing: Shows in Review," Milwaukee Journal, October 24, 1976
1976 Alderson, Jo Bartels, "Poem Painter," NEWmonth, October, 1976
1976 Harris, Chan F., "Art Committee Gets into Flap Trying to Avoid One," Door County Advocate, Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, January 13, 1976

AWARDS AND GRANTS

2008 Wisconsin Arts Board Visual Arts Fellowship
1987 Wisconsin Arts Board Project Grant

SELECTED COLLECTIONS

Dr. & Mrs. Alfred Bader, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
RBC Dain Rauscher Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota
Chazen Museum of Art, Madison, Wisconsin
Heritage Insurance Co., Sheboygan, Wisconsin
Lakeland College, Sheboygan, Wisconsin
Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, Madison, Wisconsin (museum purchase)
Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota
Methodist Hospital, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (museum purchase)
Ph. Orth Company, Deerfield, Wisconsin
Park Nicollet Health Services, St Louis Park, Minnesota
Quarles & Brady LLP, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Rayovac Corporation, Madison, Wisconsin
St Mary’s Hospital, Minneapolis, Minnesota