Two studies for Pete Asleep. Grease pencil and white conte on toned sketch paper, both 374x423 mm; 13 7/8x16 7/8 inches. Both signed and dated "1/9/83" in graphite, lower edge. 1983.
Provenance: Estate of the artist to benefit The John Burton Harter Foundation.
This pair of drawings are two studies for Harter's artwork Pete Asleep.
John Burton Harter documented the richness of gay experience through his artwork. Harter is most known for male figure studies and compositions of the male body. These works range from classical studio drawings to completed paintings and self-portraits. Many convey camaraderie and affection and are filled with joy. Harter participated in the AIDS discourse, leading to his creation of the AIDS Wall. Executed from 1992-2001, the AIDS Wall is a tribute to friends and people he admired who died from AIDS-related complications or who were living with HIV.
Born in Jackson, Mississippi, Harter grew up in Louisville, Kentucky. Interested in anthropology, archaeology, and the arts, he was educated at the University of Louisville, BA Art History, 1963 and Louisiana State University, MA, Painting, 1970. Harter worked at the Louisiana State Museum in the late 1960s and gained a reputation for his attention to detail in caring for fine art. The museum promoted him to curator and then collections manager, overseeing all holdings. Meanwhile, Harter produced paintings and drawings that often reflected his explorations as a gay man. He credited Paul Cadmus (1904-1999) for establishing an artistic climate that motivated him to explore the male nude and relationships between men openly in art. He died in an unsolved murder at his home in New Orleans.
Recent exhibitions of his work include The Messenger: John Burton Harter & R. E. Roberts, SPRING/BREAK Art Show, Los Angeles, CA, 2022 and his work was included in Art after Stonewall, 1969-1989, Leslie-Lohman Museum, New York, NY, 2019. His artwork is held in The Historic New Orleans Collection, New Orleans, LA; the Leslie-Lohman Museum, New York, NY; the Louisiana State Museum, New Orleans, LA; the New Orleans Museum of Art, New Orleans, LA; the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, CT.
