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Virginia Commonwealth University

Richard Carlyon Obituary

Richard Carlyon, 75, artist, passed away on January 20, 2006 following a courageous battle against cancer. He is survived by his wife of 44 years, Eleanor Rufty; son, Jason Anderson Carlyon; daughter-in-law, Cheryl Carlyon; sisters, Nancy C. Millet of North Port, Florida, and Marcia Whitt of Gloucester, Virginia; and a multitude of extended family and friends. Richard Carlyon was an extraordinary man. He was a devoted husband and father, esteemed artist, and beloved teacher. Dick was adored by a large extended family, a community of artists, and thousands of students that he encouraged to paint, draw, sculpt, and dance. He was born October 1, 1930 in Dunkirk, N.Y. He received a BFA in Fine Arts in 1953 and an MFA in 1963, both from Richmond Professional Institute. Richard Carlyon was professor emeritus of Virginia Commonwealth University's School of the Arts. He retired in 1996 after a long and successful career of more than 40 years at both VCU and RPI, where he taught courses in the areas of painting, art history, communication arts, dance, and sculpture. Carlyon was a highly respected artist whose work has been shown regionally and nationally both in solo and group exhibitions. His most recent show, "Selected Drawings and Paintings by Richard Carlyon" was on view at the Reynolds Gallery in Richmond, from November through December 2005. He traveled as an invited speaker to approximately 50 different communities to lecture on various aspects of contemporary American art. Throughout his career, Carlyon received numerous awards and honors, including the Distinguished Teaching of Art Award from the College Art Association for America in 1993, the Theresa Pollack Prize for Excellence in the Arts in 2001, and the Award for Excellence in Teaching, Research, and Service from the VCU School of the Arts in 1987. He also received three professional fellowships from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in painting, drawing, and video, and a fellowship from the Virginia Commission for the Arts in drawing. In December 2005, he was awarded VCU's highest honor, the Presidential Medallion, given for extraordinary achievement in learning and commitment to the mission of the university. A memorial service will be held Wednesday, January 25 at 3 p.m. at Second Presbyterian Church, 5 North 5th Street. In lieu of flowers, donations may be submitted to the Richard Carlyon Student Research Fund for Independent Study, care of the VCU Department of Sculpture, 1000 West Broad Street, Room 115, 23284-3005 or to the Massey Cancer Center of VCU, 401 College Street, P.O. Box 980037, 23298-0037.

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Published by Richmond Times-Dispatch from Jan. 22 to Jan. 23, 2006.

Memories and Condolences
for Richard Carlyon

39 Entries

Gail Nathan

January 16, 2023

I recently surfaced Richard's retrospective catalogue and re-related it to my coffee table. It's a beautiful read and brings memories back of one of the finest person I've ever kown. Over time I've come to realize how unique he was in this way. His work is still so imaginative, brilliant and engaging and I thank him for his gifts to us all.

Gail Nathan

Lance Hayden-Kump

February 18, 2006

Richard Carlyon was one of the most influential people I’ve ever encountered. I only knew him a brief time, but his wonderfully cynical and uproariously funny perspective on art and the world was not only infectious, but it caused a quantum shift in how I approached scholarship, my art, and my thought process. I was in his class the night the first Gulf War broke out. I saw such humanity in the little man with the black polo shirt…he became a giant in my mind. His loss is great, but as we can see from this guest book, his influence lives on.

Gail Gandy

January 26, 2006

In 1963, when I was 18 years old, Mr. Carlyon opened my eyes to the world. I shall be eternally grateful for having had the inimitable opportunity and vast pleasure of being in his drawing class.

Connie Brown

January 26, 2006

As Richard said about art, I must say about him---'he was magnificent, wasn't he?' He taught me much and he made me laugh...I'll always love him & miss him. Eleanor, you & Jason & Cheryl are in my thought, my heart & my prayers

Patrick Storey

January 25, 2006

Each student has different stories about Richard's take on their particular generation -all poingnantly pointed at us, as if to stir us from some kind of sleep. Anyone who was in class for his lectures -even just sitting in (with permission) will always remember something he said and has probably incorporated it into their own ideology.

During my last long trip to Richmond I saw him in the thrift store on Main St. We talked for a full half hour in one of the aisles- I think it was the shirt section, it felt like a familiar after class conversation even after so many years.

His brillaince and openness as an educator and person was experienced by too few, the lucky ones who got in to his class will never forget the experience.

Adele Wood

January 24, 2006

He was so exciting as a teacher. He was so inspirational as an artist, and as a human being. He was fun, too. Most what I cherish about Richard Carlyon, was how tremendously kind he was. In response to a get well card I sent him, he wrote me back a note. Tonight I thought I had misplaced it. Oh! I found it in my little bag of spiritually comforting cd's, books, and journals. There was his kind letter.

Melissa Paca

January 24, 2006

Richard was a spark, a bird, a dancer--he moved across the packed Hibbs auditorium laughing and telling it (modern art history) as if he were there just yesterday with Jackson Pollock, Hans Hoffman (was he there?), DeKooning, etc...people wanted to be there, his energy, love and general lust for life, and I speak of the art life, made lots of us just want to believe and Richard was believing. I took as many of his classes as I could get into during the 70's, and when I returned from San Francisco, back to VCU to get my MFA in 99, he seemed the same...his youthful manner, his laugh, his encouragement, and most of all his warmth...he came to my studio, and it was all positive conversations about my stuff--he took the time just to come visit and share with me, and that was his way. I know his passing is a shock--his joy of life made him seem so young, it's hard to accept. Well, God bless all his family and friends, we're all very sad. Richard was rich in many ways--so many of us adored him.

Sincerely, Mel Paca

Liz Joseph

January 24, 2006

This morning is was hard to go to work after having heard about Richard's passing. But, he was the greatest teacher I ever knew, so I walked into my classrom and I taught.

kate horne

January 24, 2006

Richard , richard, richard

your richmond family feels your loss. I bet you're cold hard chillin' with Andy warhol laughin at us passing the time making experimental music with the rain clouds with your black turtle neck and tinted glasses.

I can remember being at Kuba Kuba , sucking down orange soda and cafe con leches with candice hoeflinger , getting jazzed on the city talking current events from pop culture to the arts. richard was always more infinately hip than I ever have been . He was so good at making me feel like I was the only one in the room he cared to talk to. he could remember your friends, their names, what you were doing with your work, all the jokes you'd ever shared. It was like you were surrounded by something so vibrant, I would always forget how old he was. so generous, insightful. god damn ..we will all miss you.

..as i recall Richard said once"when I 'm gone, i hope there's a big party at The Sacred Cathedral. you guys better not cry, but dance for me"

ill dance all night.

cheers to you and your family.

Phyllis Douthat

January 24, 2006

God bless you Richard Carlyon. 45 years ago I sat in your Introduction to the Arts class in awe of your energy and enthusiasm! You were one of the best teachers I ever had! You assigned each of us a book to read -- you assigned me "Sidartha." I have never forgotten you and I still have the book which led me to study religions of the world and seek "enlightment" in all areas of my life. I am a better person for having known you for a brief period of time. My prayers are with you, Eleanor, Jason and family.

Richard Carlyon charcoal drawing 1965

Carol Lorraine Sutton

January 24, 2006

One of Richard Carlyon's drawings:
richard_carlyon_
image1965
Title: artwork by Richard Carlyon
Artist: Richard Carlyon
Materials: charcoal on paper.
published: Image Magazine:Volume Four, #2, Spring: page 40
Size: 20" x 26"
date: 1965
place: RPI, Richmond Professional Institute, Richmond, Virginia. Now called VCU, Virginia Commonwealth University

Allyn Howard

January 23, 2006

Richard Carlyon was one of the most amazing people I have ever met! I had never experienced anything like him before I began my Arts Foundation courses at VCU. I took as many of his classes available to me after that. He made such an impact on every student that was lucky enough to have him as a teacher. I regret that I hadn't seen him in years, but I think about him a great deal. I still feel so influenced by his insights on art & popular culture. He was such a keen observer & seemed to literally soak up information. He was genuinely interested in other people and just had the best energy & sense of humor. To his family, I am sorry for your loss. I'm sure you know how loved & admired he was. I will always treasure those classes, Allyn (Class of 89)

Lisa-Thi Beskar

January 23, 2006

Dick Carolyn,

So many lives you inspired, encouoraged, touched and believed in. I will always treasure the many incredible exchanges in your office, studio, lectures and openings. How fun it was sharing drawings and making sketches together from what now seems like a lifetime ago!

I chuckle fondly as I think back on some of the many eye-opening, brilliant lessons you taught me about making art.

Respectfully,

Lisa-Thi

Robert Barefoot

January 23, 2006

In the early sixties, RPI art professors, Richard Carlyon along with James Bumgardner, Willard Pilchard, Arthur Biehl, Leon Bellin, Jewett Campbell and Jonathan Bowie dried me off behind my little artist's ears. I will never forget the night circa 1977 that I and a friend of mine, Whit Cutchin (d. 1984) drove Richard to his home while I played the then disco hit, "Love is in the Air". I only saw and spoke with Richard briefly twice after that night. I just learned of his illness the week of January 20 and so help me, this past Friday, I was working on a get well card for him. Damn.

Bob Barefoot

Justin Lincoln

January 23, 2006

Richard came out of retirement to teach a sculpture class that I was lucky enough to take. Not a single student seemed to encounter him without later singing his praises. He was a paragon of artistic and interpersonal virtues.He will certainly be sorely missed.

John LaPrade

January 23, 2006

Richard Carlyon will be deeply missed. He had a tremendous impact on my life, one than I cannot thank him enough for. I will never forget his brilliant lectures that turned into thoughtful personal conversations. A drawing of Richard's hangs proudly in my bedroom and it will always be one of my most cherished possesions. My life is richer for having known him.

Nancy Schandelmeier

January 23, 2006

Richard Carlyon was a perfect brother-in-law, my husband's best friend, and a loving, delightful, attentive uncle who championed our daughters throughout their lives. His loss is unconsolable.

Suzanne Ellett

January 23, 2006

While it has been many years, of the many voices from my students days, Mr. Carlyon's voice and lessons ring in my ears each day that I pick up my brushes. My deepest sympathy to all of you.

Jack Blanton

January 23, 2006

The loss of a gift is never easy; we now celebrate that great gift to us - the life, the art, the musings, the teachings, the humor of Dick Carlyon, a giant in the art world withour peer.

Jerry Bates

January 23, 2006

I remember sitting in the Capitol Theatre (1968) while Richard lectured to hundreds of

Art students during his" Introduction to the Arts" course. Richmond, R.P.I , and so many new faces were unfamiliar to me and all of this

combined to make me feel small and sort of insignificant. Yet , Richard had a special gift of communicating to this mass of students with such inspiration and with his own humorous form of candor that I left me totally mesmerized.

His made me feel as if he and I were the only

two people in that crowded theatre. That class was about more than the evolution of the Fine Arts . There was an equally mixed number of

"life lessons" intertwined within one paragraph

after another.

Since then he and I became close friends and we've worked together for many years. I will miss him deeply. However, Richard's laugher, his words of wisdom, and that sparking zest for life will stay with me for the rest of my life.

Thank you Richard !

Brenda Freeken Behr

January 23, 2006

Who can forget Richard Carlyon? In my mind he will always be young, and ahead of his time. He was one of my first teachers at R. P. I. in 1966, the year I started college. Just what this small town mind needed to open itself to possibility and to learn to appreciate "modern art." His stories about Mondrian, Cezanne, and other artists of the 19th-20th centuries remain with me to this day. And the stories about Richard remain just as fresh. Thank you, Richard, for your insights and for mind expansion 101.

Nancy (Robinson) Campbell

January 23, 2006

Ahh - Mr. Carlyon ....

When I first came to work at VCU, almost 30 years ago, Dick Carlyon's class was, without a doubt, THE most popular in the School of the Arts. He literally PACKED the students in the Hibbs auditorium classroom - maybe 150+ at a time... and had a FEW such classes. (To this day, I don't know how he kept all the students straight in his mind.) His classes were so highly spoke of - I sat in, a couple of nights to see what all the talk was about. I quickly saw Mr. Carlyon's energy, humor, and caring nature. No wonder he "packed the house"!!!

As time went on, I developed a small, but humorous friendship with the gentleman. I could recognize his laugh from down the hall and always looked forward to seeing his ever-smiling face.

His stories, his energy, his interest, his caring were all amazing.

Since I've moved on to other areas of VCU, I've missed Mr. Carlyon. Now I will only miss him more ... as I know his family will. My condolences.

Gail Nathan

January 23, 2006

Richard was a major highlight of my years in Richmond. He gave the greatest insights about my work. He was a warm and dear friend. My sympathies to Eleanor and family. I will always remember him. Gail

Jimmy Sadoski

January 23, 2006

Thanks!

Carol Lorraine Sutton (of RPI)

January 23, 2006

Richard Carlyon believed in chance and the luck of coinciding moments coming together. Chance struck me with great luck when Richard Carlyon became my teacher at RPI, (Richmond Professional Institute, now VCU) for four years in the sixties. Richmond, Virginia is a better place today for having had Richard Carlyon. He was a seer, a visionary, a dynamo in the classroom, and a superstar in his lectures that had students lining up at 8 o’clock AM for a chance to hear pearls sprout out his mouth. Boy could he talk. If you were late, you could not get in, as often it was standing room only and sometimes line ups to get inside. Richard made you feel that he was grabbing you up into a flying air balloon and giving you the vast aerial view peering down with insight, superb intellect, detail, and humor into the art world below. His speaking made you think, made you wonder, made you laugh and made you judge aesthetic experiences and results for yourself. Richard spoke as if he were your friend, your peer, your fellow student, as he himself was a lover of learning. Just as Carlyon loved learning, we loved learning from him. Richard was always keen on current art and was a Modernist himself, yet loving of Poussin, Cezanne, but mainly Matisse.

Richard’s pursued of learning took him to books. He had built his own vast library of art books and I’ll never forget how impressed I was seeing all his art books his home. I once asked him how much he spent a year on books, and understood the priority of values he placed on the importance of learning and reading. He inspired me to build my own art library.

Richard was a soaring eagle as a teacher but also a gentle dove. He took you step by step forward, as a leader, yet was willing to back step to pick up any missing item. Richard Carlyon put the bang into RPI’s BANG Spring Arts Festivals. Carlyon was a model for other artists.

I think of Richard’s love and respect for his wife’s Eleanor Rufty’s artwork. They were a great team. My heart cries for Eleanor and their son Jason.

The art of Richard Carlyon was like him as a man; mind expanding, multi tasking, cleanly tailored, sometimes messy, full of layers, mindful of gaps, lover of collage, had use of hand (fingers) and touch, steamed through time in video, made great of small chance and found things and was warmly giving. Richard loved drawing and he could really draw. Carlyon's artwork never relied on a formula, and kept growing, readily taking on varied shapes, forms, changing meanings as he went forward making modernism. He was a protean talent. Richard was able to fill his art with a density of experience and distill his own unique purist statement.

My beloved Richard will remain in my heart forever.

Ann Pollock

January 23, 2006

My deepest sympathies for your loss. I will remember Richard for his ready conversation, his laughter, and his amazing intelligence. I will always remember the "rolling rocks" or were they "bowling rocks?" I have always appreciated how genuine and friendly he was. I am thankful to have known him.

Ted Salins

January 23, 2006

The best teacher I ever had.

Ted Salins

VCU Painting and Printmaking class of 1974

Joann Clack

January 23, 2006

Richard was "Uncle Dic(k)ie" to my siblings and I. He was the most fun of all our relatives to spend time with for all the same reasons he made a such a strong impression on his students. All of us looked forward to visits with him especially when both his sisters, Marcia and Nancy were around. It was always entertaining to hear the re-telling of the same stories over and over again. Each time when I thought I knew every detail - something new would be added. The three of them would get louder and more dramatic which added to the entertainment factor. All of us will miss him immenseley as there will never be another one like Uncle Dic. I pray for all those who knew him that your memories will provide peace and comfort to you as you think about him in the coming days.

Will & Pat Pilchard

January 23, 2006

We are saddened to hear that the creative mind of Richard has been lost to the world. He will live on in the spirits of all the students and colleagues that he touched.

Lora Jacobsen

January 23, 2006

I am heartbroken for your loss. My prayers are with you during this difficult time.

Elizabeth King

January 23, 2006

Richard, everything you had you gave to us, your family, your friends, your students. Like the time you taught a course in the Sculpture Department and kept weekly journals on the students -- one for each soul in the class. Three month's of your impressions and thoughts on twenty errant young artists. And then you gave each journal to the respective student on finals day. To be one of those students! To have and hold those words and that handwriting now!

January 23, 2006

As Richard said about art, I must say about him---'he was magnificent, wasn't he?'. He taught me much and he made me laugh...I'll always love him & miss him. Eleanor, you & Jason & Cheryl are in my thoughts, my heart & my prayers.

Greig Leach

January 23, 2006

Farewell Dick. To one who held us to a high standard, who made the history of art as exciting as the art itself and to a man who's influence on Richmond and national art is immeasurable, you will be missed. My favorite saying of his was "I'm not making this up." Used to describe the oddities of the artistic life, or life in general.

Daniel Calder

January 23, 2006

Respect

Amie Garrett Grayson

January 23, 2006

I will also remember Mr. Carlyon's teachings. He was one of the best professors I had at VCU. Always giving of his time & ideas, he made everything we did an adventure in art. Though I have been gone from VCU for a while now, he is still very vibrant in my memories. The art community & the community of Richmond will miss him greatly. My thoughts & prayers go out to his family. What an extraordinary man.

Diana Lively

January 23, 2006

After Richard retired from VCU in 1996, I was bemoaning his absence to the late Phil Meggs. Phil said, "I know what you mean. Richard is so revitalizing." Carlyon's charisma, humor, his startling "takes" on things, and his kindness were huge, and hugely affecting. None of us who knew him will ever stop missing him.

Cindy Neuschwander and Jay Barrows

January 22, 2006

Jay and I both extend our heartfelt sympathies for your loss. Richard was beloved by many and will be missed by all, and I'm sure most especially by his family.

Elizabeth Meggs

January 22, 2006

Richard was the greatest teacher I or my parents ever had. He lit fireworks in the minds of his students. In his classes, he was ten thousand brilliant things at once. As students, my friends and I worshipped him and always have continued to feel that way. He is a superstar. He was like a comet in the classroom: full of light and energy. He made this place have sparks. He made us see the whales that pass by on the street. He showed us just how exciting art and the world truly are.

I remember how on his last day of teaching, before he retired, he did a performance piece where he poured coffee grounds across canvas and then the students followed him walking across that canvas. That was a great example of how he was the essential coffee for so many artists - he woke us up, energized us, and led so many to create and understand. His own artwork was beautiful and full of the same great energy he had in the classroom. The intellect and art he shared will surely resonate throughout the world exponentially, beyond bounds anyone can gauge. He told us that great artists are determined by posterity, but I don't think we need future generations to know that Richard was unequivocally a great artist and man, and will always be thought of as such.

I'll miss his smile, his sweetness, his humor, his great interest in everything, seeing him walking on the street. His voice and spirit will always be with me, and with everyone who knew him or was his student. I'll miss him tremendously. I love him. My heart goes out to Eleanor, Jason, and family. You are all in my thoughts.

Mim & Chuck Scalin

January 22, 2006

Eleanor and Jason, our thoughts are with you and your family. We have such wonderful memories of Richard. He will live on in our hearts.

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