Michael Frary

Michael Frary was born in Santa Monica, California, in 1918. Before devoting himself to fine art he worked in the Hollywood film industry, an experience that sharpened the dramatic light and structure of his later paintings. He later became a professor of art at the University of Texas at Austin and, eventually, Professor Emeritus. Frary became one of the central figures of Lone Star Modernism, drawing on Futurism and Surrealism to build semi-abstract compositions of the Texas landscape — coastal scenes, hill country, deserts, and weathered architecture — most famously in watercolor, a medium he helped elevate in the state, and on which he authored several instructional books. His talent earned national recognition: in 1972 the U.S. Department of the Interior commissioned him to paint at reclamation sites, with the resulting works shown at the National Gallery in Washington, D.C., and Austin's architectural community honored him with medals of honor. His paintings and watercolors remain widely collected.