Art Blog/Eric Whollem

Monday, April 26, 2010

ANGAKOK/ the transformation of an Eskimo shaman into a seal/ WATERCOLOR AND INDIA INK ON PAPER/ a figurative pictographic abstraction

Angakok

1983

by Eric Whollem

India ink and watercolor on paper

Collection of the artist

9 x 6"

Copyright by the artist

The Eskimo Shaman

Angakok is a name given to the shamans of the Eskimos
in Alaska. The angakok is related to the shamans of Siberia,
where metaphysical practitioners are called "divers." This
diving relates to the duck, which is a bird which can fly high,
but also dive deep into the sea.

Wisdom's Neutrality

1984

by Eric Whollem

India ink, gouache and plastic emulsion on paper

Collection of the artist

5 1/2" x 4 1/4"

THE DIAMOND BODY/ earth pigments, polyvinyl resin, and watercolor on paper/ A GEOMETRIC ABSTRACTION/ metaphysical symbology

The Diamond Body

1981

by Eric Whollem

earth pigments, polyvinyl resin, and watercolor on paper

Collection of the artist.

10" x 7"

Sunday, April 25, 2010

THE YELLOW MASK/ abstract art/ MIXED MEDIA ON PAPER/ a figurative abstraction

The Yellow Mask

1984

by Eric Whollem

India ink and wax resist on paper

Collection of the artist

4 1/2 x 2 1/8"

Saturday, April 24, 2010

SONG OF THE PEOPLE/ an abstract work depicting the Kakinim, or spirits, who are evoked in the singing of traditional Maidu Indian music

Song of the People

1984

by Eric Whollem

watercolor, plastic emulsion, and wax resist on paper

Collection of the artist

9 x 6"

The Kakinim

The Kakinim are those beings who are called

spirits or ghosts by the Concow Maidu Indians

of Northern California. Kakini is the singular

form of the word.

The Sutter Buttes in the Sacramento Valley are

called Histayami by the Maidu. Histayami is

divided into three spirit levels by the Maidu.

Kakinimkodom, or Spirit Country, is the highest

level.

This painting gives an imaginative visual form

to a Maidu song. . . a surrealistic interpretation.

BELOW IS A VIDEO ABOUT

CONCOW MAIDU

CULTURE

ERIC WHOLLEM

An excellent album of Maidu songs was issued

by Pacific Western Traders in Folsom. I used to

live in the house of one of the singers on that album,

Herb Young, a shaman of the Maidu.

_______________

SPIRIT ANIMALS OF THE CONCOW MAIDU

Video by Eric Whollem

See my posts about the Maidu Indians on this link:

http://artblogericwhollem.blogspot.com/search/label/maidu%20indians

SEED FIRE/ a mixed media abstraction symbolizing the life force in seeds

Seed Fire

1984

by Eric Whollem

watercolor, parafin, earth pigments and polyvinyl resin

Collection of the artist

6 x 9"

NEW COLUMBIA/ a mixed media abstraction on paper

New Columbia

1984

by Eric Whollem

watercolor and wax resist on paper

Collection of the artist

9 x 6"

Thursday, April 22, 2010

SHASTA HOMEOPATHIC/ mixed media: bronze paint, acrylics, and pumice from Mt. Shasta in polymer emulsion/ ALCHEMICAL TRANSMUTATION

Shasta Homeopathic

                                       1983
                                        by Eric Whollem
                                        mixed media on paper
                                        Collection of the artist
                                        4 3/16" x 3 3/4"
                                                                 Copyright by the artist

Transmuting Emotive Energy Through Art

This painting utilizes earth paints made from volcanic
pumice from Mt. Shasta in conjunction with a variety of
other paints. In this work I attempted to reengergize my
art with earth from a sacred place. The pigment used here
was gathered on the McCloud side of the mountain.

Magic Bird Rock

1983

by Eric Whollem

India ink on paper

Collection of the artist

The Birds of the Petroglyph Section

MODOC ROCK ART, NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

Tule Lake used to be much larger than it is today.

Thousands of years ago many of the rock promontories

in the desert north of the Modoc Lava Beds were islands

in the lake.

LITTLE OLD MAN/ a pictographic mixed media abstraction based on California Indian rock art

Little Old Man

1984

by Eric Whollem

India ink and wax resist on paper

Collection of the artist

9 x 6"

Copyright by the artist

___________________

See more of my FIGURATIVE ABSTRACTIONS on this link:

http://artblogericwhollem.blogspot.com/search/label/figurative%20abstraction

Pictographic Abstractions Video.

A figurative abstraction.

ETHERIC ORGANIC/ an abstract work of art

Etheric Organic

1984

by Eric Whollem

gouache and wax resist on paper

Collection of the artist

6 x 9"

DAYDREAMS/ India ink, wax and plastic emulsion resist on paper/ ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM/ PICTOGRAPHIC ART

Daydreams

1984

by Eric Whollem

India ink, wax and plastic emulsion resist on paper

Collection of the artist

5 1/2" x 4 3/16"

COPYRIGHT BY THE ARTIST

SEE MORE OF MY ABSTRACT ART

ON THIS VIDEO

Figurative Abstractions by Eric Whollem

BOX BLOCKS/ a geometric abstraction in watercolor medium

Box Blocks

            1981
              by Eric Whollem
              watercolor on paper
              Collection of the artist
              3 3/8" x 2 1/4"
                            Copyright by the artist

CUMBERLAND GAP/ mixed media resist on paper/ ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM/ PICTOGRAPHIC ART

Cumberland Gap

                                                    1986
                                                     by Eric Whollem
                                                     mixed media on paper
                                                     Collection of the artist
                                                     6 x 9"
                                                                                        Copyright by the artist

Listening to Old Timey Mountain Music

I was listening to Cisco Houston's version of "Cumberland
Gap," an old Appalachian folk song, when I painted the work
seen here. Such titling, no doubt, is not uncommon with artists.
Everything has it's subtle influence.

DREAM FARM ROADS/ a visionary interpretation of Chi Chi Te, Black Earth Village, of the old Mooretown Rancheria in Feather Falls/ CONCOW MAIDU CULTURAL ELEMENTS IN THE WORKS OF ERIC WHOLLEM

Dream Farm Roads

              1986
             by Eric Whollem
               gouache and wax resist on paper
               Collection of the artist
                            Copyright by the artist

The Big Heads of Chi Chi Te

This mixed media painting is filled with pictographic
symbols that relate to the culture of the Concow Maidu
Indians of Butte County, California.

BIRD WOMAN/ figurative ceramic goddess sculpture

Bird Woman

                                            2010
                                            by Eric Whollem
                                            business card
                                                                       Copyright by the artist

Sea Green Skies

               1986
               by Eric Whollem
              Collection of the artist
               6 x 9"
                          Copyright by the artist.

SCRYING THE BERYL STONE/ a geometric figurative abstraction rendered in mixed media/ DIGITAL ART

Scrying the Beryl Stone

                                                    1992-2010
                                                 mixed media digital art
                                                   Collection of the artist.
                                                                                       Copyright by the artist.


The Beryl Stone

My painting of Rosebone, painted in 1972, contained
a red orb. This was the Beryl Stone. See my post of
March 19, 2010 for the whole story.

THE DESERT OF MATERIALISM/ a visionary mixed media painting/ A FIGURATIVE ABSTRACTION

The Desert of Materialism

1984

by Eric Whollem

Collection of the artist

6 x 9"

The Desert of the World of Matter

Most people in the world today strive to accumulate

things. This search is a vain one, according to the

teachings of religious masters like Buddha and Jesus,

who advocated spiritual detachment.

The Existentialist philosophers also bemoan the

fruitlessness of worldly things. But usually they arrive

at a form of despair, which gives them no comfort.

The image above is a loose interpretation of religious

icons from Russia, showing a crouching man seeking

water in a dry streambed in the desert.

__________

Readers interested in my posts on Spirituality may want to see:

http://artblogericwhollem.blogspot.com/search/label/spirituality

My posts that deal with Visionary Art may be accessed here:

http://artblogerichwhollem.blogspot.com/search/label/visionary%20art

My gallery of Abstract Art may be seen here:

http://artblogericwhollem.blogspot.com/search/label/abstract%20art

Abstract art, mixed media painting, spirituality, metaphysical art

Monday, April 12, 2010

PRINTEMPS/ visionary figurative mixed media digital art

Printemps

                                                      2010
                                                      by Eric Whollem
                                                      mixed media digital art
                                                                Copyright by the artist.