Jerry Butler, Jon Horvath reception

media release: From May 2 through July 13, 2025, the James Watrous Gallery will feature concurrent solo exhibitions by artists Jerry Butler of Sun Prairie and Jon Horvath of Milwaukee.

Jerry Butler's Echoes from the Arc includes powerful paintings and collage works focused on Butler's response to Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous assertion that the moral arc of the universe bends toward justice. In this series of richly textured portraits, Butler celebrates those he calls “the arc benders,” from committed activists and change-makers to ordinary people surviving against impossible odds. Butler’s portraits, which freely mix realism and abstract elements, honor individuals from his own community as well as figures from history. “My responsibility as an artist is to tell the truth,” Butler says. “I feel I have to illustrate and talk about the bravery of everyday people.” 

Jon Horvath's Wide Eyed is an ongoing series that embraces what he calls “photographic wandering,” exploring the complexity and intangible essence of the world around us. Training his lens on everything from clouds and abandoned vehicles to traffic cones and brooms, he creates pictures with a surreal quality of stillness, and often arranges them to spark surprising connections between the images. Horvath describes it as “a response to my surroundings, grounded in a sense of wonder and awe. What these pictures mean is entirely up to the spectator and their mystery is part of the fun.” His humble, open approach encourages us to look around us and see our homes and neighborhoods with fresh eyes. 

These exhibitions are supported in part by a grant from Dane Arts with additional funds from the Frautschi and Rowland Foundations, Diane Ballweg, and the Endres Mfg. Company Foundation.