Casein Painting of Turtles, People and Symbols [SOLD]

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Geraldine Gutiérrez (1960 – )

close up viewI have known Geraldine Gutierrez since the 1980s and often purchased paintings from her then and into the 1990s but never did see anything as comprehensive as this one.  Mostly, the ones I am familiar with are single-figure paintings.  This painting, completed when she was 18 years of age, is amazingly detailed.  Geraldine was tutored by her famous uncle, Gilbert Atencio, and Gilbert was an outstanding artist and made it a point to instruct Geraldine to be the same.

 

There are five large turtles, each of which was elaborately decorated with eagle feathers and an eagle design.  The two turtles on the upper have feathers on the upper half of the turtle’s back and an eagle on the lower half.  The two turtles on the lower have the designs reversed.  The turtle in the center features eagle feathers over the complete back of the turtle.  The center of the back of each turtle has a sun face, each of the five slightly different in style.

 

There are four small petroglyph-type human figures near the edge of each of four turtles and ten of the figures associated with the center turtle.  Lightning from the mouths of the two upper turtles strikes the back of two Pueblo dancers.  There are two additional pueblo dancers on the edge of the center turtle and a larger pueblo female below the center turtle.  She holds evergreen trees in each hand and lightning from the mouths of the close turtle strikes the trees.  There is a male and female Koosa Clown on the edges of the painting near the center.  Two very abstract eagles are placed on either side of the center turtle and colorful rain clouds are at the top center.

 

Geraldine Gutiérrez (1960 – present) signatureThe background has been sprayed with a mixture of paints through a mouth atomizer.  The paining is signed Geraldine Gutierrez and dated ’78 in lower right.  It is triple matted and framed in a wood frame.

 

Condition:  appears to be in original condition

Provenance: from the collection of a gentleman from Arroyo Hondo, NM

Recommended Reading: Through Their Eyes: Indian Painting in Santa Fe, 1918-1945.  This book is currently not available from Adobe Gallery.

Geraldine Gutiérrez (1960 – )
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