“Why do the same thing forever, anyways?” —Joseph Glasco

Joseph Glasco is one of Texas’s foremost Modernists, bridging figurative traditions with bold abstraction. Celebrating Joseph Glasco honors the centennial of his birth. Four of his signature paintings, ranging from the early 1970s to 1995, document his always-inventive spirit as well as his deep engagement with the history of Modern art.

Glasco (1925–1996) was born in Oklahoma and raised in Tyler, Texas. Drafted during World War II, he served in Germany in the last months of the war. The G.I. Bill allowed him to enroll at the Portsmouth Art School in England, and he continued his studies in Los Angeles and Mexico City. He settled in New York in 1949, and in 1952 he was featured in the Fifteen Americans exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art, along with Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, and Clyfford Still.

The following year Glasco left New York, finding creative freedom first in Taos, New Mexico, and later in Galveston. He continued a rigorous course of painterly exploration, embracing abstraction in the 1970s, as well as collage techniques. His triumphant and monumental paintings of the 1980s and 1990s were greeted with acclaim internationally.

Celebrating Joseph Glasco / July 2–October 12, 2025

Plan Your Visit

• This installation is located on Level 1 of the Law Building.
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