Exhibition Opening
Sacred Wisdom
SAN BENITO CULTURAL HERITAGE MUSEUM
250 E. HEYWOOD ST.
SAN BENITO, TX 78586
FOR INFORMATION: 956-281-0810
Opening Reception:
17 October 6-8 PM
Artist Talk:
16 November 10 AM
Workshop:
16 November 12-2 PM
Sacred Wisdom is a collection of paintings and drawings that offer glimpses into the dramatic lives of plants and animals native to the Rio Grande Valley. The images reflect my experiences exploring ranches and nature centers, and my childhood love for this land.
A center-point of this exhibit is a large drawing of the 900-year-old Montezuma Bald Cypress that grows in Abram, Texas. I visited this tree many times over the past year, enthralled by its presence. Like many people, I tend to see the world as it relates to my own experiences, goals, and needs. But perceptions change when I consider my life and community as just a blip along this tree’s massive timeline. Due to centuries of human intervention, her home has radically transformed since she was a sapling along the banks of the Rio Grande in the early 12th century. Instead of a neighboring river, she now sees a border wall and 97% of native habitat lost to agriculture and development.
I consider the changes in my own lifetime. Growing up in the Valley, I have memories of catching fireflies with my brother while playing outside on warm summer nights. Yet it’s been years since I’ve seen those magical flying lights. Other wonderous creatures like our native Ocelot are nearly extinct. I wonder, will we notice when there are no longer Caracaras, Roadrunners, or the countless plants and animals that are irreplaceable components of our unique ecosystem? These are our sacred spaces; they offer lessons of life, death, and rebirth, of balance and continuity, and joyful moments of understanding that come from a strong connection to nature. Will we choose to honor and protect them?
In Sacred Wisdom, weeds and critters from native brush take center-stage, spotlighting their paramount importance and unexpected beauty. Paintings balance hyper-realism with messy and at times chaotic surroundings, revealing the magic of the outdoors – its abstractions, movements of energy, and relationships. Some images are far away, full of many marks and colors. Others are zoomed in, sensual, and full of discovery as tiny insects dominate their realm. The different perspectives reflect my time outdoors, from initial encounters with large and messy landscapes to the slow discovery of the microworlds from which they are made.
I choose this subject believing that if we ignore and forget our native lands, we lose part of our heritage and cultural identity. Sprawling strip malls with chain stores and restaurants could be from any other town in America. But in the cactus-and-mesquite-filled monte beats the heart of this place. Sacred Wisdom documents and celebrates an ancient and dynamic region through stories that play out in the flowers, grasses, and cacti of my home, the Rio Grande Valley.
October 2019