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Who is Gustave Blache, III?
New Orleans' Artist Documents
Dooky Chase Restaurant

Art critics have had some fine things to say about Gustave Blache III.

Doug McCash wrote in a November 2003 issue of The Times Picayune that “Gustave Blache III, combines Degas-esque off-center compositions with acute Monet-like observations of natural light.”

In a December 2006 issue of Gambit, Eric Bookhardt wrote, “Gustave Blache is a youthful New Orleanian now making a name for himself in New York. Reflecting a rather Francophile style reminiscent of Degas with overtones of Courbet, his paintings have appeared in old-master exhibitions in which he was the only living artist. Despite ties to 19th century France and 21st century New York, he regularly returns home . . . Blache tempers the immediacy of the present with a deeper perspective rooted firmly in the past.”

Chef and New Orleans icon Leah Chase speaks a little more plainly about the young artist who is now working on a series of paintings of her that document her work in her kitchen.

“He is an interesting young man, very humble,” she says. “And his paintings are beautiful, marvelous. I like what he is doing.”

Making it in the big city

There are others that like what Gustave Blache III is doing. Blache is a sensation in New York where he lives, works and has had several successful exhibitions.

“New York’s fast pace meshes well with my work ethic,” he says. “Everyone who lives here is here for something. I was able to see art works from contemporary artists who were making names for themselves internationally. What I valued the most about New York were the museums. The Metropolitan was where I could go to study the masters up close and personal.”

Blache made New York his home after earning his graduate degree there, though his original plans were to earn his graduate degree and then return to New Orleans.

“When I first came to New York for graduate school, my intention was to get my MFA and try to get a college teaching position in New Orleans and maybe then return to New York at a later date,” he says. “But in my last semester of graduate school, I decided to give it a shot in New York while I was there. Why leave and then try to come back when it’s so hard to get to New York in the first place? That was my logic. So I got a job as an art handler/registrar at an art gallery called Vance Jordan Fine Art; and the rest is history. I got my first solo show in New York at the age of 24; and there was no turning back.”

Although the native New Orleanian now calls New York home, his ties to the Crescent City are still strong. He is one of the artists of Cole-Pratt Gallery on Magazine Street. One of his early works sold at auction here in New Orleans this spring for $13,000.00; and Blache’s paintings are also in the collection of the McKenna Museum on Carondolet.

New Orleanians will get to preview recent works by Blache, including some of his paintings of Chase, in early November at Le Musée de f.p.c on Esplanade Avenue. Art historian and appraiser Michael Chisolm will speak about collecting the work of African American artists. When Chisolm speaks, it will be a rare opportunity to understand the importance of building a personal and family collection of art, as well as to see the work of a native New Orleanian whose exquisite paintings honor one of our most beloved citizens.

Homegrown talent

Blache, who attended, McMain High School and the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, completed his BFA at the School of Visual Arts in Savannah, Ga., and his MFA at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. He has exhibited at the School of Visual Arts Westside Gallery and the Tribeca Art Club. Today, he credits opportunities he received as a youngster in New Orleans for helping to hone his skill and fuel his passion for art.

“I was fortunate enough, along with one other student, to have the chance to study at NOMA once a week, during school hours, while attending Coghill Elementary School. “I had to be in the fourth or fifth grade when I would go to NOMA to study,” Blache says. “Looking back on it now, it’s tough to remember everything we did. I mean we would go around and draw and work in a classroom setting at times, but I do think that being in that environment allowed me to subconsciously absorb the great collection that NOMA has. I do believe it had a profound effect on me as an artist. I’m pretty sure it helped shape my sensibilities as an artist and my appreciation for masterworks. The young mind is sponge-like, so it was almost inevitable the art would seep in.”

And his work began to be noticed even as a child.

“I took private classes on the weekends while in elementary school, painting still life and landscapes. In fourth grade, along with the other student who would go with me to NOMA, we designed a mural that hangs in Atlanta at the Martin Luther King Memorial Building.”

Oddly enough, when the opportunity for a teenage Blache to attend NOCCA became apparent, he wasn’t exactly excited.

“My mom was the single motivating factor for me to apply to NOCCA. She was very good about keeping me involved in extra-curricular activities,” he says. “I was actually resistant to the idea of joining NOCCA at first. As a teenager, I didn’t want to be separated from my friends at McMain. So I figured all I had to do was fake the test. For our test, we were given a still life of a cow’s skull to draw, something similar to Georgia O’Keefe. Fortunately for me, I failed in that effort of failing; and they accepted me. Being able to solely focus on art uninterrupted for four hours out of each day was invaluable.”