Goodbye, Nathan

http://www.crownpoint.com/files/images/angelrocker_lg.print.gif


Nathan Oliveira
Angel Rocker, 2005
Color sugar lift aquatint with aquatint and drypoint
Image Size: 45 x 36"

I was about to write a post about how Nathan Oliveira influenced my work.


Influences are inevitable. One of the pivotal experiences of my art career was an off-campus residency with Nathan Oliveira at the Santa Fe Institute of Art in New Mexico. Although almost twenty years have past, his emphasis on "letting the form emerge" is burned into my psyche. That concept guides my work today and probably always will.


When I searched for links, I found this one:

In Memoriam: Nathan Oliveira 1928-2010

Tears welled up in my eyes and a hole opened in my gut. I felt like I'd lost my shining light. Even though we hardly corresponded, his importance to the artist in me was monumental. Nathan transformed my artistic practice from intellectualized to passion-driven. He emphasized credibility, the importance of process, and the concept that content and painting go hand-in- hand. His ideas will remain center stage in my practice.


Goodbye, Nathan. Your influence will carry on.




If you would like to read more about Nathan Oliveira, click on these links:

http://news.stanford.edu/news/2010/november/nathan-oliveira-obit-111710.html
http://www.conversations.org/story.php?sid=79
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-seed/nathan-oliveira-19282010_b_783995.html
articles.sfgate.com/2010-11-19/bay-area/24839837_1_arts-and-crafts-modern-art-richard-diebenkorn