Art I'm Seeing #36

detailfscholderpainting, originally uploaded by Randuwa.

Kudu's to the National Museum of the American Indian for it's staging of the retrospective "Indian/Not Indian" the paintings, prints and sculptures of Fritz Scholder. It's one of the most dynamic exhibitions I've seen in a long time. And for me, it was also an introduction to a contemporary American artist of whose works I was wholely unfamiliar.

By and large the exhibition is full (35 canvases) of large, lush, electrically colorful portraits and abstracted images with a dozen or so sculptures, and another 3 dozen smaller works. En toto, it's the story of one man's attempt to define a people and rescue them from the stereotypical iconography of the past. On a canvas by canvas basis, it's also the story of an artist in love with his craft.

On this rainy Sunday morning, I had the place completely to myself and was free to really spend time with the artwork unhindered by the noise and movements of others. What a gift. And as amazing and captivating as the large paintings in the exhibition are, the images that I am left with most profoundly are a series of simple skull paintings made using Diet Coke mixed with the artist's blood.

If you are in D.C. anytime in the near future check this one out.