The Colby Museum of Art, is in Waterville, Maine and on the campus of Colby College. We've gone back to it a few times while visiting the great state of Maine, so I would recommend it, if the exhibit interests you. When we got there, we found out it was community days or something like like. There was music, events (I got a sweet new button made from a Richard Scarry book and we both got another button featuring cities we like in Maine, made by the staff of the public library.) So after eating a hot dog, making a print on fabric, getting some ice cream and making our pins, we entered the museum, and there are five things that caught my eye that day.
Cochiti Priest Mono
Seferina Herrera
c. 1885-90
According to the label, this piece of pottery was made "to parody to settler occupants of the Pueblo Lands". I liked the weirdness and the colors. Humor has been a language used by people for how long, I wonder. When did people decide that the odd things around them needed to be pointed out and that making people laugh was a great way to do that?
Untitled
Juan Pino
before 1937 (that is weirdly specific and vague at the same time)
It is a woodblock print
The label notes he alone was working in this medium, in the Pueblo community. The label also notes this was a depiction of everyday life. Art was the original documentary before film came along.
August Moon
Dan Namingha
2022 (oh, recent!)
Acrylic on canvas.
The big bold yellow moon and the colors drew me in. Seems Dan has famous artist blood in his veins. He is the great, great grandson (and I think they mean generational, not a really great grandson) of a well known potter. You can tell this is a modern piece by the art-speak on the label. I'm not saying it isn't sincere, but my eyes did glaze over a bit.
Taos
Victor Higgins
c. 1914-15
Oil on canvas
It was the sky and muted colors that made me stop and take this pic. That cloud is remarkable. No angry old man is going to yell at that! This painting has to do with a pretty serious matter, it seems. While they lived on this land, the federal government had ne rules for them on how they could live there. One notable bit of contention was strict rules on hunting. On their own land. How do we think that would fly in today's political environment?
A series of four images.
Jason Garcia
2023 (super recent!)
Painted clay tiles.
The rain cloud is his signature element. Clearly, he has a sense of humor (and a good one). The mixture of old school tradition and modern elements will almost always win my heart over. When it is done this well, how can one not stop and appreciate it. He is a modern artist, so of course he has an Instagram account one can follow.
Opmerkingen