Frederick Holmes
Top of this page: Oscar Van Young. Laundresses, 1938, oil on canvas, 40 x 28 inches

In Seattle’s present gallery scene one art dealer — Frederick R. Holmes — has stood out as the leader in introducing collectors to the paintings of early to mid 20th century Modern and Post War artists. His most important accomplishment at his eponymous gallery is the rediscovery of Walter Quirt [1902-1968]. Reviewing Sidney Janis’ book, Abstract & Surrealist Art in America, we see a painting by Quirt opposite the page featuring one by Jackson Pollock. Janis described Quirt as “a maker of a new world.” That new world was rediscovered in 2015, when Holmes and his colleague Travis Wilson launched the rediscovery exhibition, “Walter Quirt: Revolutions Unseen.” It was the artist’s first show in thirty-seven years. As the exclusive representative of the estate collection, Holmes has since produced several exhibitions of the artist’s work — long privately held out of public view by the family. In 2017 he mounted the most comprehensive retrospective, “Walter Quirt: A Science of Life.” The next year, he followed up with another important exhibition, “Walter Quirt/Rolph Scarlett: Missing Pages,” which examined the long-obscured legacies of these two critical contributors to the canon of American modernism. Holmes’ most recent discovery, exhibited at the end of 2021, is the estate collection of the figurative expressionist painter Oscar Van Young [1906-1991].

As Holmes enters his fortieth year in the art business in 2022, he is often asked about his background. He is fond of replying, “Let’s just say I’ve worn many hats!” That millinery procession began in 1982 with Hanson Galleries in Carmel, California, where he was Gallery Director until 1995. He was then recruited to Hong Kong as Director for the editions publisher Vincent Lee Fine Arts, and returned to the U.S. as its President of Publishing and Marketing. In 1998, he was again recruited by an edition publisher, this time for the American sculptor, Frederick E. Hart [1943-1999], where he was liaison to galleries throughout the country exhibiting Hart’s sculpture. This role gave him an opportunity to work with a wide variety of galleries, public art and cultural institutions, and view art in every major city. In 2009, he took time off to explore museums and other cultural sites in Italy, France, and Spain. Upon his return the next year, he was recruited by The Weinstein Collection in San Francisco, well known for representing the estates of the early non-objective painter, Rudolf Bauer [1889–1953] and the surrealists Gordon Onslow-Ford [1912–2003], Enrico Donati [1909–2008], and Gerome Kamrowski [1914–2004]. The gallery also featured significant collections by Roberto Matta [1911-2002], Rolph Scarlett [1889–1984], Jimmy Ernst [1920–1984], and Leonor Fini [1907–1996] — as well as the most famous modern masters, including Picasso, Miro, Dali, and Chagall. It was upon this foundation of “wearing many hats” in the art world that he founded Frederick R. Holmes and Company in 2013. Now, Seattle is benefitting from his mission to broaden public awareness of artists whose works call for a closer look and appreciation.