J. Roman Andrus
UAP Biography
James Roman Andrus was born in St. George, Utah in 1907. He
was a painter, printmaker, and educator. He died in Provo,
Utah in 1993.
Andrus studied at the Otis Art Institute with Eduard
Vysekal and Roscoe Shrader from 1934 to 1939. He received a
bachelors degree from Brigham Young University in 1942 and a
masters degree from BYU in 1943. He studied at the Colorado
Springs Fine Art Center in the summer of 1943. In 1950 he
studied at the Art Students League in New York. He received
his Ed.D.from the University of Colorado in 1958.
In 1940 Andrus joined the art department faculty at Brigham
Young University as an instructor of painting. He remained
in that position until 1943. He was an assistant professor
of painting and printmaking from 1950 to 1953 followed his
appointment as professor of art from 1958 to 1974. He was
named professor emeritus in 1974. He founded the
university's printmaking department.
The overpowering interest in Andrus's work is in the
interplay of color and rhythm. His work is characterized by
expressionistic landscapes with undulating motion and fauvist
color. Although he paints portraits, he is best known for
landscapes such as
Cadmium Crest (1964) and
Peaks and Passes (1971).
Sunrise Peak (1972) is one of his lithographs. Andrus
won the Utah State Institute of Fine Arts Purchase Prize in 1945
and 1950. His work was exhibited at Brigham Young University from
1940 to 1942, and at the Springville Museum of Art from 1939
until 1946.
Additional Biography
Bibliography
Newspaper Articles
"Art Canvass."
The Deseret News, April 22, 1990.
"Artist And Educator Roman Andrus Dies."
The Deseret News, June 27, 1993.
"Rewriting the Book on Utah Art; Rewriting The Book On Utah
Art."
The Salt Lake Tribune, January 4, 1998.
"Utah Landscapes Grace Springville Gallery."
The Deseret News, November 12, 1989.
Books
Davenport, Ray. Davenport 's Art Reference. Ventura, CA: Davenport's Art Reference, 2001.
Dunbier, Lonnie Pierson, ed. The Artists Bluebook: 29,000 North American Artists. Scottsdale, AZ: AskART.com, 2003.
Falk, Peter Hastings. Who Was Who in American Art, 1564-1975: 400 Years of Artists in America. Madison, CT: Sound View Press, 1999.
Falk, Peter Hastings. Who Was Who in American Art: Compiled from the Original Thirty-four Volumes of American Art Annual--Who's Who in Art, Biographies of American Artists Active from 1898-1947. Madison, CT: Sound View Press, 1985.
Hughes, Edan Milton. Artists in California, 1786-1940. San Francisco, CA: Hughes Pub. CO, 1986.
Mallett, Daniel Trowbridge. Index of Artists, International-Biographical; Including Painters, Sculptors, Illustrators, Engravers and Etchers of the Past and the Present. New York, NY: P. Smith, 1948.
Olpin, Robert S., William C. Seifrit, Vern G. Swanson. Artists of Utah. Salt Lake City, UT: Gibbs Smith Publisher, 1999.
Swanson, Vern G., Robert S. Olpin, Donna Poulton, and Janie Rogers. Utah Art, Utah Artists. Layton, UT: Gibbs Smith Publisher, 2001.
Swanson, Vern G., Robert S. Olpin, and William C. Seifrit. Utah Art. Layton, UT: Peregrine Smith Books, 1992.
Swanson, Vern G., Robert S. Olpin, and William C. Seifrit. Utah Painting and Sculpture. Layton, UT: Gibbs Smith Publisher, 1991.
