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Museo Fonda<\/strong>\u00e7<\/strong>ion Eugenio Granell, Santiago de Comopostela, Spain<\/strong><\/p>\n

July 13 – September 24, 2017<\/p>\n

Artist Statement for LEGENDS<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Mythology is a powerful element that shapes humanity. Old legends spanning millennia have created heroes and religions, defined beliefs and became deeply embedded in our universal consciousness. I have always been interested in these ancient tales and have chosen two stories from different cultures, times and continents as the subjects for my current exhibition, LEGENDS<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The first group of works is inspired by the myth of Medea<\/em><\/strong>, the archetype of the abused woman taking revenge on her victimiser. As with most myths, various interpretations exist regarding the murder of her children. Euripides was among the first to attribute the deaths of Medea\u2019s children to her own hand, although other versions abound.<\/p>\n

In these mixed media works on paper I focused on Medea\u2019s plight, by concentrating on her face and thoughts. What went on behind those eyes turned inwards, contemplating the destruction of her life, her security and her sense of belonging? The ghostly shadows of the children she is about to lose to another woman are a haunting and surreal presence. The daydream of a life with her beloved, for whom she gave up everything she had, becomes a garden of flowers growing from her head. Medea\u2019s story has all the elements of human tragedy: love, betrayal and the yearning for justice.<\/p>\n

The second part of the exhibition derives from a body of works inspired by the initiation practice of the Hamatsa secret society of the Kwawaka\u2019wakw tribe of British Columbia, entitled The Cannibal Birds Suite<\/em><\/strong>. As a new immigrant in Vancouver, I was fascinated by the majestic art of the indigenous people of the West Coast. This interest resulted in a large surrealistic body of works that incorporated elements of native culture combined with images of the flora and fauna in the environment in which these people have lived for centuries.<\/p>\n

The initiation ritual begins with a young man being sent to the forest where he encounters the fierce Cannibal Bird, who attempts to devour him; in the ensuing struggle the youth prevails and becomes a man-eating bird himself. Dressed in hemlock leaves, gnashing his teeth and biting people on his way, he returns to his people during the Potlach, the winter dance festival, and dancing around the fire he regains his humanity and finds his song. This powerful myth of overcoming one\u2019s demons and finding one\u2019s soul, inspired me to create a number of works on this subject. An important element in these works is a forest symbolizing the soul\u2019s wanderings among the trees, in search of truth. Cannibal Birds lurk among the trees; they are the demons we have to face so that we may find ourselves.<\/p>\n

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Pnina Granirer was born in 1935 to a Jewish Rumanian family. She moved to Israel in 1950 in the aftermath of atrocious historical circumstances, which included surviving Nazism and shortly thereafter, the so-called \u201cdictatorship of the proletariat.\u201d Twelve years later, she moved to Vancouver where she has lived ever since.<\/p>\n

Always resorting to a great variety of media and techniques, in the late seventies Pnina Granirer\u2019s work took a turn that would bring it significantly closer to Surrealism. Between 1978 and 1981, she was inspired by the landscape and rich native cultures of the Pacific Northwest which brings us a vision that Agustin Espinoza would have described as \u201cintegral\u201d, that is to say, as poetic and non-realist.<\/p>\n

Totemic elements and Kwakiutl masks are incorporated into the series on anthropophagic birds. These mythical birds haunted the forests where people went in search of their song, or their inner being.<\/p>\n

Jose Miguel Perez Corrales, professor of Philology, Tenerife, writing in <\/strong>Surrealismo: El Oro del Tiempo\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong> <\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0To view the exhibition go to LEGENDS under Portfolios
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 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 Museo Fonda\u00e7ion Eugenio Granell, Santiago de Comopostela, Spain July 13 – September 24, 2017 Artist Statement for LEGENDS Mythology is a powerful element that shapes humanity. Old legends spanning millennia have created heroes and religions, defined beliefs and became deeply embedded in our universal consciousness. I have always been interested in these ancient tales … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “LEGENDS – Fondacion Museo Eugenio Granell, Spain”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-875","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n