Garden of the Turtle
1998
by Eric Whollem
earth pigments, gouache and acrylic emulsion on paper
Collection of the artist.
14" x 11"
Copyright by the artist.
Coon Man and Bearfish Mother in Turtleland
Many Native Americans posit the Turtle as a Creator Spirit. A being who
created the world and all that lives in it out of a handful of mud. I have
followed this tale in sympathetic sport, having taken a bit of earth paint
from the archaic bed of the prehistoric sea that used to fill the Sacramento
Valley floor and mixed it with some gouache paints from the art store.
The result is Garden of the Turtle.
This painting may puzzle those who cannot fully comprehend the Turtle's
role as a gardener in the sea. Kakool Coon (Raccoon Man) and Bearfish
Mother in their journey into the mental world of imagination have done an excellent job of finding joy in the realm of that bogey, "Abstract Art."
It is in the Turtle's Garden that fish and bird enjoy the same element.
WHEN KAKOOL COON LOST HIS BOOK
It was only when Coon Man released himself from the stress of his 9 to 5
job in Technopolis that he could at long last relax enough to take a stroll
in the golden gardens of our noble amphibian. On the bus he lost his book on
The Relationshiop of Post-Conceptual Proto-Minimalism to the Rarifications
of Cubistic Residues in the Aesthete's Ashtray and found himself enjoying
art for a change.
Coon Man had been distraught of late, worrying about the end of the Mayan
Calendar. This worry really struck home with him as his name was always
derivative of Kukulcan, the Mayan version of the Aztec god, Quetzalcoatl.
Also the disc earrings he and his brothers always wore were definitely Mayan.
Coon Man had been drowning his apocalyptic worries in art. A good idea unless
your appreciation comes from a compendium of criticism.
CONVERSATIONS IN THE INTERIM
"But is it Art?' asks Bearfish Mother.
Coon Man said, "I finally get my first painted portrait, and already the
Chimaeras are lost in torturous ruminations on the very existance of the
work in question. I am very sure that Garden of the Turtle exists, for
I have documented evidence: a check from the artist for time spent as
a model on said work."
"A paper trail--how very documentary," said Bearfish Mother."My
flipper leaves no trail print and yet I know that I swim. I swim
therefore I am. Proof is no proof if it falls into the pool of the fool."
"Art is art, if it is at all frameable," said Coon Man.
"My paw print is art; but it is not frameable," said Bearfish Mother.
"Ah, but it is not a giclee, now, is it?" said Coon Man.
At that point Coon Man and Bearfish Mother returned to their proper places
in the Garden of the Turtle, and everyone lived happily ever after.
__________________________
Readers who enjoyed this might also appreciate the creative writing involved in POETRY; for these folks I might suggest my posts on that topic:
My posts on the MAIDU INDIANS:
BELOW IS A VIDEO THAT
DEALS WITH MY ART AND
THE CONCOW MAIDU INDIANS
ERIC WHOLLEM
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