Miriam McClung Noted Alabama Woman Artist

A Call to Art Historians for Scholarship of a Significant Southern Woman Artist

We are working to promote and encourage academic scholarship of Miriam’s life and art as a significant Alabama woman artist over the last 70 years. If you know of or are interested in learning more about access to her extensive collection and notes or would like to set up an interview, please contact us, and we’ll get back to you.

Based on Miriam’s vitae, we’ve created sample lines of inquiry for further research that would be valuable for an art historian to explore regarding her life and work:

  1. How did the lack of a public art museum in Birmingham during McClung’s youth influence her artistic development, and how did her father’s emphasis on museum visits during family vacations shape her artistic vision?
  2. In what ways did McClung’s early training under Louise Cone, copying paintings and drawings, influence her later artistic style and teaching methods?
  3. Analyze the transition in McClung’s work from Abstract Expressionism to Contemporary Impressionism following her return from New York to Birmingham in 1959.
  4. How did McClung’s experience studying under Mark Rothko at the University of Colorado summer program influence her abstract period works?
  5. Examine the impact of the Jesus Movement of the 1970s on McClung’s artistic themes and how it transformed her approach to biblical subjects in contemporary settings.
  6. Compare McClung’s portraiture techniques learned at the Farnsworth School with Jerry Farnsworth to her later portrait works, particularly analyzing the influence of El Greco.
  7. How did McClung’s different studio spaces throughout her career (Manhattan basement, Highland apartment, Montclair Road apartment, Warren Road home) influence her choice of subjects and artistic techniques?
  8. Analyze the influence of Birmingham’s urban development and “Over the Mountain” communities on McClung’s landscape paintings from the 1960s through the 2000s.
  9. What role did McClung’s experience at the Art Students League of New York play in developing her abstract expressionist style, as seen in works like “Brown and Blue Abstract” (1959)?
  10. How does McClung’s series “Stations of the Cross” integrate Birmingham’s Highland Drive landscape with traditional religious iconography?
  11. Examine the influence of McClung’s 2003 Holy Land trip on her artistic interpretation of biblical scenes, particularly in works like “The Damascus Gate” and “The Wall in Jerusalem.”
  12. Compare McClung’s watercolor techniques developed at the Burnsville Painting Classes (SeeCelo) with her later pastel works of the 1990s.
  13. How did McClung’s dual roles as caregiver and artist impact her artistic production and career trajectory compared to her male contemporaries?
  14. Analyze the artistic relationship between McClung and her University of Alabama classmates William Christenberry and Dale Kennington, examining their parallel career developments.
  15. How does McClung’s work reflect the social and cultural changes in Birmingham from the 1950s through the Civil Rights Movement and beyond?
  16. Examine the evolution of McClung’s color palette and technique from her early abstract works through her contemporary impressionist period to her biblical paintings.
  17. What role did McClung’s involvement with the Birmingham Museum of Art’s development play in the city’s artistic community during the 1960s?
  18. How does McClung’s integration of Birmingham landscapes into biblical scenes compare with historical precedents of artists setting religious scenes in contemporary environments?
  19. Analyze the influence of Birmingham artists Max Hellman, Billy Wilson, and Arthur Stewart on McClung’s artistic development after her return from New York.
  20. Examine how McClung’s experience at the Metropolitan Museum of Art working with Marshall Davidson influenced her understanding of American art history and her own artistic practice.

We would love to hear your thoughts and ideas for research into Miriam’s collection and art. Contact us!