The Majesty of Trees
Magic Hour – work in progress
Thursday, July 24th, 2008
Magic Hour, 60H x 40W x 3D inches acrylics on canvas, work in progress.
Art history is human history. What we call Art is the expression of individuals finding connection with our humanity; who are we? How do we respond to our surroundings and who are we in relation the things we depend on for survival? Standing in front of the Totems I realized that the answers we sought long, long ago are the same, and the things we love now are the same things people have always loved. As Artists and Art Viewers we’ll never venture far from subjects that speak to the heart.
The originals of all the totem poles erected in Thunderbird Park on the grounds of the Royal BC Museum in Victoria, Canada are now protected from the effects of weather inside the museum. The totem portrayed in this painting is a replica of the Gitxsan Pole that was moved in 1958 from Kitwankool, BC. This version of the pole is named Skim-sim and Will-a-daugh, belonging to Chief Wiha (Wee-kha, Ernest Smith), the chief of the Wolf Clan: only the top 3/4 of the totem is portrayed. Due to deterioration caused by weather, the originals of all the totems in Thunderbird Park are now erected inside the museum and are replaced with replicas carved by Mungo Martin, chief carver, Henry, Tony and Richard Hunt (this one 1960).
Symbols/crests: The bird at the crown is a giant woodpecker (wee-get-welku). Legend reads that a female ancestor kept a pet woodpecker, feeding it so much it grew to be a giant monster that ate everything made of wood until it was killed. It sits atop 5 human figures who stand on the head of the Mountain Eagle (Skim-sim), who kidnapped and mated with a woman then devoured their offspring. The eleven small figures are humans fishing through holes in the ice. Under them and not pictured in the painting is Will-a-daugh, also known as “Person With a Large Nose”, holding her child who was conceived from a wood grub.
White Pine Bows
Friday, April 18th, 2008
White Pine Bows, 20H x 34W x 2D inches acrylics on canvas, wrapped sides painted. (sold 2010)
Some paintings take a long time and change dramatically from start to finish. Others have a clear direction and seem to flow out in a day, as this one did.
Post-dated note: showcased in Visual Arts Society of Texas’ 125 Show July 24th – August 15, 2008.
Also, Debby Davis a local Denton TX poet wrote a poem inspired by the White Pine Bows painting
Bouncing branch to bough within stiff white pines,
finding my eyes uplifted; what a show!
Violinist gently pulls; taut bow whines.
Bouncing branch to bough within stiff white pines,
like the beat of an orchestra playing.
Violinist gently pulls; taut bow whines
raining harmonies; colors displaying.
Like the beat of an orchestra playing,
my thumping heart strings tug me into now!
raining harmonies; colors displaying,
I am an audience of one somehow.
My thumping heart strings tug me into now!
It is the secret that only I shall know.
I am an audience of one somehow.
Fragile notes fracture light into rainbow.