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Alexis Portilla94 x 74 in. / 7 ft 10 x 6 ft 2 Oil Painting - Black Elk
About the Item
This is a vast canvas by Alexis Portilla working in abstract expressionism, in a piece with gripping energy, directness, and an emotional impact.
Black Elk
Oil on Canvas
94 x 74" / 7 ft 10" x 6 ft 2"
About this piece:
Influenced by the emotion of artistic expression in music, poetry and literature, the artist finds bold expression in color, lines and shapes that resemble pictographs, and texture. This piece is inspired by ideas and words of historical figure Black Elk. The themes speak to a yearning for a more coherent universe, and the need to consider meaning and purpose in our actions, and finding balance and awareness.
According to an icon of Abstract Expressionism, ‘Beauty is the mystery of life. It is not just in the eye. It is in the mind. It is our positive response to life.. Beauty is an awareness in the mind. It is a mental and emotional response that we make” (Agnes Martin)
Black Elk (1866-1950) was an Oglala Lakota holy man, one of the greatest American spiritual visionaries of all time, known to millions of readers around the world from his 1932 testimonial, “Black Elk Speaks”. Adapted by the poet John Neihardt from a series of interviews, it is one of the most widely read and admired works of American Indian literature.
Lakota holy men still teach the great lessons of this tradition–respect for sacred power, the relatedness of all beings, and care for the earth–and they still draw on Black Elk's legacy, which continues to confront and challenge European ways of viewing humanity, society, and the cosmos.
“There can never be peace between nations until there is first known that true peace which is within the souls of men.”
– Black Elk
The Sacred Pipe, by Joseph Epes Brown
“The power of a thing or an act is in the understanding of its meaning.”
– Black Elk
The Sacred Pipe, by Joseph Epes Brown
In 1980, Congress created the Black Elk Wilderness in the Black Hills National Forest that honors Black Elk in a way that the Oglala understand. The highest point in South Dakota is Black Elk Peak.
About Artist:
Alexis Portilla holds an MFA from Columbia University and a BFA from Pratt Institute. His work is in more than 250 private collections worldwide and in many international public and corporate collections including The New York Public Library, Harvard University, Pepsi Co., Warner Music Group, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Penn State University, Norwest Venture Partners, and Mikasa Corporation. He has exhibited internationally at venues from New York to Hong Kong, including the Grand Rapids Art Museum in Michigan, Hofstra University Museum in New York, and Monmouth Museum in New Jersey.
“Alexis is a poet in space and a painter of original feeling… He conveys a constant sense of expansion.”
Artist Will Barnet (1911-2012), June 2007
“Using simple forms and creating swathes of rich texture, Alexis Portilla builds atmospheric abstract paintings that convey a sense of time having passed. Brushy areas of color suggest the indeterminacy of memory, while bold linear forms speak for the present.”
Meredith Mendelsohn, Art News magazine review.
The artist has shown in group and solo exhibitions both nationally and internationally. His works have been commissioned by major corporations, universities and for private collections.
Education
MFA, Columbia University
BFA, Pratt Institute
Selected Public Collections
Penn State University
New York Public Library
Selected Corporate Collections
Harvard Club Cambridge, MA
Meredith and Grew Boston, MA
Farley White Boston, MA
Edwards and Angell Providence, RI
Acadian Asset Management Boston, MA
Proskauer Rose Boston, MA
- Creator:Alexis Portilla (1965, American, Mexican)
- Dimensions:Height: 94 in (238.76 cm)Width: 74 in (187.96 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Gallery Location:Los Angeles, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU2418851762
About the Seller
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- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Los Angeles, CA
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 2 days of delivery.
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