The discovery of the Lascaux Cave paintings in France during World War II changed how we view art and its importance to us as human beings. The loose line drawings from the Paleolithic Era are in earthen colors and cover the entire inside of the cave. These drawings were not just part of a ritual; their artistic value is obvious in the color, the style and the groupings of the paintings. They express a clear artistic voice and a connection between the artist and the work. The Lascaux Cave paintings reassert an innate human need to reproduce and to create art.
David Burtner's exhibit, "Journey from Lascaux: From Nature to Man," on display at Tufts' Slater Concourse Gallery, examines this natural connection between man and art. The show is presented by the artist's daughter, Jennifer Burtner, whose comments note how her father's earth-toned, abstract pieces reflect the landscape of her childhood home in El Paso, Texas. Burtner found special meaning in the El Paso scenery, a landscape that was of great importance to the indigenous peoples who lived there. Drawn to the connection between the landscape and the people, his art reflects this relationship.
Burtner mainly produces abstract works, but there are some recognizable images in the form of loose line drawings very reminiscent of those at Lascaux. The colors are bright but not artificial, consisting of reds, greens, yellows and browns. Divided into three main groups, the paintings focus on the desert landscape, figures in motion and running horses. Burtner's choice to stick to a natural subject matter reflects his continued interest and connection to the paintings at Lascaux. The images all reflect the oldest theme in art, a need to reproduce one's surroundings.
One example is Burtner's painting entitled "Flight" (2005). On a background of blues, pale yellow and burnt sienna, two human figures stretch across the canvas, viewed from the bottom as if in flight. The shapes of various birds that fly around them mirror the figures, barely noticeable and blending into the background. The same colors found in the background play across the figures, integrating them into their surroundings. The people's faces are not visible; instead, they stretch their heads up to the sky.
The painting suggests a connection between the people, their surroundings and the birds. The fact that they are all in the same color field clearly links them. The flight seems to be a metaphorical one with heads lifted toward the sky, which is made of the same fabric as the landscape and the birds. The image is dreamlike and suggests the ongoing journey that humans as a species have made from our natural origins.
"Black Canyon on the Gunnison #1" (2005) is a more direct examination of the land. Bold line drawings describe an undulating canyon, clearly shaped by a river that is represented by a thick path of blue, bubbling water winding diagonally across the canvas. The abstract, curved lines that go across the entire surface are made even more energetic by an intense splattering of paint across the canvas in reds, greens and yellows. The composition's abstract forms posses an energy that reflects the changing face of the depicted landscape. The image's combination of the abstract and concrete leaves space for the viewer's imagination to roam while simultaneously giving direction to the viewer's thoughts.
This idea of energy expressed through simple forms harkens back to the Lascaux cave paintings. Burtner continues to return to the early roots of art in a way that suggests he is trying to return to a more natural way of representing the world around him.
Burtner's paintings reflect a deep tie to the desert landscape and a personal connection to the people who originally lived there. His paintings are not just duplicates of early cave paintings; they are explorations of the motivations of those earlier artists. With their loose, natural imagery, the paintings reflect a desire to return to human roots and seek to find a place for art that is integrated into natural existence.
--
Journey from Lascaux: From Nature to Man
At the Slater Concourse Gallery
Tufts University Art Gallery
Aidekman Arts Center
617-627-3518
