Contemporary Art

Artist's Statement

In my work I paint by series. At the present time I am working on six series. They are: The Great Goddess; Fairy Tales, the Hero's Journey; Raven; Abstract Series; and Mystery of Chaco Canyon.

In the black and white figurative series I use, as did the German Expressionists, bold and distorted forms to portray the tragedy of the human condition. I believe that life is painful, full of angst and tragedy, but humor is what allows us to go on. Often I play between the two ideas in my work-pain and humor.

In creating my art I draw on my many life experiences: A Director of the Institute of American Indian Arts, my study of Jungian psychology in Switzerland, my study of Shamanism in the Amazon, my study of oriental philosophy and medicine, my study of Tibetan Buddhist philosophy.

In my art I am interested in portraying the controversial; the mystery, the joy, the wonder, and the spiritual process of life and how we interact with ourselves, each other, the earth, and the greater universe.

I am interested in so-called primitive forms of art because of the ambiguity, the distortion, the dislocation of form - this correlates with modern art. Connection is a classical concept: things go together. Dislocation is a modern one: you try and upset the human experience.

I am originally from Santa Fe, New Mexico and I grew up in northern New Mexico where my father was an archeologist. I spent many enjoyable hours exploring the ruins in and around Santa Fe, New Mexico. When I was four years old my father took me to study painting with Po Povida. Po Povida was the son of famed potter, Maria Martinez, of San Ildefonso Pueblo. Po's son was my best friend, so every Saturday we learned to paint in the vivid colors I use today. Po's teaching style, in form, was very contemporary.

After college I left Santa Fe and went to Peru in the Peace Corps. After the Peace Corps. I returned to Santa Fe and became one of the directors of the Institute of American Indian Arts. The Institute was both a high school and college program for Native Americans. At that time there were over 100 different native tribes in residence. The focus of the Institute was on the preservation of native traditions but, also, to teach contemporary forms of art. This included contemporary painting, contemporary pottery, contemporary music and contemporary sculpture. Some of the notable Native American instructors at that time were Alan Houser, Fritz Scholder, Lloyd Kiva New, and Loloma.

Artistic Influence:
Schiele, Nolde, Kokoschka, Dubuffet, De Kooning, African Art.

You'll find Iwaski Contemporary Art listed on:

www.art-search.us