by Deb Scott
Usually we “just” post an image and say “have at it.” Well. You can do that this time, too. But if you’d like a little more information about the artist who created this work of art, read on after the pictures. (Click on them for larger images.)
Roxanne Swentzell, Tewa, 1962, Window to the Past, 2000, Bronze, artist proof
Collection of the artist, on loan to the Heard Museum
“If Roxanne Swentzell had not found art, there would have been no communicating. As a young girl, she had a speech impediment that made it impossible for anyone to understand a word she was saying, even when her sister helped translate. Out of desperation the 6-year-old made miniature figures in clay, sculpting their faces to convey her stifled feelings. ‘Those little pieces said a thousand words,’ she recalls.” — Dottie Indyke in Southwest Art
Find the entire article here.
And come back Thursday to Get Your Poem On.
These are Deb’s photos, which you may repost on your own site at will. Enjoy.
[...] some photos. And intend to share a few. Soon. But right now at Read Write Poem four of them form a visual prompt. I have ideas about the photos. Thoughts about the sculpture. But don’t want to impose them [...]
That’s just amazing…takes my words away.
I work with kids just like that, kids who have to find wordless ways to speak. This artist is indeed an inspiration–thanks for bringing her here!
When I lived in the Southwest I was privileged to see an exhibit of Swentzell’s and also visited her pueblo. She is truly a magnificent talent. The cultural iconoclasm that she brings to her sculptures is mesmerizing. Thanks Deb, this is a great piece. Takes me back to good times in Santa Fe.
[...] This piece is one of several of hers, and other family in the current show, Mothers & Daughters, Stories in Clay, which just closed at the Heard. Her mother is Roxanne Swentzell, whose images were highlighted in Read Write Image #8. [...]