Rarely seen paintings from pioneer Kansas abstract artist on exhibit

A series of paintings by one of perhaps Kansas’ least-celebrated female artists of the 20th century is currently on display at the Reuben Saunders Gallery, 3215 E. Douglas.

Sue Jean Covacevich of Wellington was a student of Birger Sandzen at Bethany College from 1925 to 1927, and though many are familiar with Sandzen’s work, Covacevich’s art is rarely displayed.

Her repertoire was the subject of a retrospective at Kansas State University’s Beach Museum of Art – which specializes in Kansas art – in 2010, and at the Wichita Art Museum in 2006. Covacevich died in 1998.

The vast majority of her art is in the possession of her daughter, Teresa Covacevich Grana, and is locked away in Winfield.

Recently, Saunders saw one of her pieces hanging on the wall of Emprise Bank chairman and art collector Mike Michaelis. He was shocked to see a Covacevich painting in person – he’d had access to her prints before but her paintings are more rare.

Michaelis connected Saunders with Grana, who is actively seeking to get her mother’s work out of storage and on display.

The gallery now represents some of Covacevich’s work, which is presented in its exhibition, “Sue Jean Covacevich: An Independent Spirit.”

“I just felt it was important that she be in the literature and she be recognized,” said Grana, an art historian who has worked at the National Museum of American Art. “To that end, I’ve worked to organize her collection to make sure it’s in museums, to make sure it’s documented.”

Her work

Covacevich is considered one of the pioneers of abstract art in Kansas, as her work often veered into the realm of abstraction. She also painted many colorful landscapes and still lifes.

In 1945, Covacevich was hired at Winfield’s Southwestern College, where she founded the Department of Art and remained until 1952. From 1961 to 1969, she headed the art department at Derby High School, where she was responsible for a large mural project.

She was a single mother in a little Kansas town, working as an artist to support her children in the mid-20th century.

“I think her life, in many ways, is a wonderful model for many people,” Grana said of her mother. “In her time was very unusual – now we have a lot of extraordinary women in our lives who are independent, one of whom is running for president, but in her time, that was not the case.”

Though Covacevich was a lifelong friend of Sandzen’s, she never adopted his signature style. Her style was rooted in the philosophy and impressionism of Sandzen and her admiration for Arthur Wesley Dow, but was formed as a result of her own unique perspective, as well as many trips around the world, including to Mexico, where she stayed and painted for about 10 years in the 1930s and ’40s.

“I think that directly relates to her passion as a teacher,” said Cori Sherman North, curator of the Birger Sandzen Museum in Lindsborg, which has exhibited Covacevich’s work in the past. “To teach you have to know about all the different kinds of art – Mexican, European, modern abstraction, everything, before you can really teach properly. She would have to try different things out herself so that she could teach what students are interested in at any given point.”

‘One of the least well-known’

Some think Covacevich’s work eclipsed that of her mentor Sandzen’s, but Sandzen exhibited in New York and other places. Covacevich was mostly limited to Kansas, a decision partially of her own choosing – she was never one to actively promote her own art – and partially of the era. It was not easy for women artists to exhibit their works in the early to mid-20th century, as they were often looked upon as inferior to male artists.

Also, there were fewer gallery spaces at which to exhibit in general.

“I could tell you many stories when she was rejected and the men artists were put in, but she went on,” Grana said. “Still today ... the statistics on exhibitions for women artists are just dreadful.”

At a Final Friday event last month, many of Covacevich’s former students came to the Reuben Saunders Gallery to appreciate the work of their late mentor, who paved the way for many future artists in Kansas.

“Sue Jean Covacevich embraced a life lived through art – whether learning, teaching or traveling - where art enhances life, but where life also enhances art,” Saunders said in a statement. “She should be considered among Kansas’ most versatile and talented artists of the 20th century, but who remains one of the least well-known.”

This story was originally published October 13, 2016 at 8:30 PM with the headline "Rarely seen paintings from pioneer Kansas abstract artist on exhibit."