Dan Sutherland
What I had
May 9 – June 20, 2026
Reception for the Artist Saturday, May 9, 3-5 pm, Artist Talk 4 pm
Moody Gallery is proud to present What I had, an exhibition of recent paintings and drawings by Dan Sutherland. What I had, Sutherland’s seventh solo show at the gallery since 2006, is on view May 9 – June 20, 2026.
Dan Sutherland utilizes visual devices and strategies from a diverse array of art-historical sources, including Medieval Illumination, Analytic Cubism, and Dutch still-life painting. The paintings in this exhibition feature convincing, true-to-life illusionism and dynamic, colorful abstraction. In some compositions, Sutherland weds these two modes to create otherworldly constructions that seem to exist in a state of flux, appearing like transitory windows or portals. In other compositions, Sutherland forgoes illusionism almost entirely, focusing primarily on the colorful, rhythmic elements of abstraction. He often works on irregularly shaped surfaces made of metal or wood. Through a process of responsive painting and revision, Sutherland tunes the painted structure and space to the shape of the support to exaggerate movement and toy with perceived depth and stability. In his achromatic drawings, Sutherland renders scenes with precision and refinement. Though replete with detail and delicately rendered tonal changes, the scenes in his drawings remain playfully inconclusive and elusive, yet imbued with movement, instability, and a sense of transition. The scale and complexity of Sutherland’s paintings and drawings lure the viewer closer, rewarding concentrated viewing.
Dan Sutherland (b. 1966, Dover, New Hampshire) currently lives and works in Austin, Texas. He recently retired from teaching painting and drawing at the Department of Art and Art History at the University of Texas at Austin. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Virginia in 1988 and a Master of Fine Arts degree from Syracuse University, New York in 1991. Sutherland’s work has been included in exhibitions at the McNay Museum of Art, San Antonio, Texas; McAllen Museum of Art, McAllen, Texas; Galveston Arts Center, Galveston, Texas; Blue Star Art Space, San Antonio, Texas; Diverse Works, Houston, Texas; Metcalf Gallery, Taylor University, Upland, Indiana; Florida State University Museum of Fine Arts, Tallahassee, Florida; Fosdick-Nelson Gallery, Alfred University, Alfred, New York; and The Laholm Drawing Museum, Hasttorget, Sweden. He is also a recipient of an ArtPace Foundation London Studio Program Grant and a Leopold Schepp Foundation Grant.
Moody Gallery is open Tuesday - Friday 10:30 am - 5:00 pm and Saturday 11:00 am - 5:00 pm. For more information, please call or email the gallery at 713-526-9911 or info@moodygallery.com. What I had can also be viewed online at www.moodygallery.com.