Empire Diner (Primary Title)
John Baeder, American, born 1938 (Artist)
"A lot of people ask me why I paint diners. . . . It’s a question I’ve never had to ask myself. I want to preserve diners. I love them. And I express this passion in the best way I know—by painting them." —John Baeder
Baeder shares with fellowPhotorealists the use of photographic sources, exacting painting style, and preference for everyday subjects. However, where many of his peers maintained a level of neutrality toward their subjects, Baeder’s exclusive focus on the diner mixes personal recollection with social commentary. The diners symbolize the car trips of youth and the disappearance of American roadside culture.
At the same time, Empire Diner diverges from Baeder’s usual format in showing the building at an angledrather than frontal view and in showing it at night, glowing like an Art Deco icon of the greasy spoon. The effect hints at Baeder’s mixed feelings for this glammed-up downtown New York version of a beloved American institution.
"Get Real: Selections from the Collections of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and Frances and Sydney Lewis", Piedmont Arts Association, Martinsville, VA, 4 April - 28 June 1998
"Contemporary Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, "Muscarelle Museum of Art, College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA, 30 Sept - 15 Nov 1987
"Selections from the Sydney and Frances Lewis Collection in VMFA", Delaware Art Museum, March 29 - May 10, 1987.
"Real, Really Real and Super Real: Directions in American Realism", San Antonio, et al, 1 Feb. 1981-3 January 1982.
"Recent American Realist Paintings", Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, 18 March - 17 April 1977.
"New Realist Works from the Collection of Sydney and Frances Lewis, "VPI, Blacksburg, in conjunction with SEAC, Oct 16 - 18 1977
Some object records are not complete and do not reflect VMFA's full and current knowledge. VMFA makes routine updates as records are reviewed and enhanced.