“在神話與時間之前，它們隻是移動的丘嶺”

2011年我和Ted去亞利桑那州東北部旅遊，拜訪那個叫做彩繪沙漠的土地。行程從鳳凰城世界著名的美洲印第安人藝術與曆史展品的Heard博物館開始，然後是Wupatki印第安村落廢墟遺址、三個地台和霍皮族村莊、石化森林國家公園，以及彩繪的沙漠。最後，我們結束了行程回到Heard博物館。當就要走出博物館時，Ted發現了Berlin畫廊，那裏展示了美國印第安藝術家最優秀的雕塑、繪畫和攝影作品。

一幅60乘60英尺的繪畫以鮮豔的紅色、綠色和藍色展現的地貌立刻擊中了我的視覺。在繪畫的中心，似乎有一位身著紅色裙裾的舞者正在旋轉，綠葉、白水和藍天飄漩在她的身邊。我們完全被繪畫呈示出的這個雄偉而神秘土地的精神深深吸引和震撼了。繪畫的標題是：“在神話與時間之前，它們隻是移動的丘嶺”。畫家是Stephen Yazzie（斯蒂芬·雅孜），納瓦霍美國現代畫家。這是他的紅色地貌係列的代表作，其它作品也陳列在美國幾個著名的畫廊和博物館。

後來見到了畫家。斯蒂芬帶我們去了亞利桑那州美術館，參觀館內收藏的他的現代藝術作品。在介紹作品時，我們了解到他是怎麽成為一名藝術家的。他從小在納瓦霍土地上長大，在第一次海灣戰爭中開始畫女性人物給戰友們解悶，後來獲得獎學金就讀於藝術學校。作為印第安人藝術家，他的成名作是受聘為Heard博物館承作的展現印第安人藝術與曆史的壁畫。我還發現，斯蒂芬和我都對美國的神話學家Joseph Campbell（約瑟夫·坎貝爾）有同樣的興趣，特別是他的那本書“神話的力量”。

以下是斯蒂芬·雅孜本人對他的“神話與時間之前”的注解。

無論我們從哪裏來，我們都賦予土地意義，這是非常人性化的。特別是重山峻嶺，它們具有靈性，依附著它們的物體因而生長，並且由於我們的家庭、文化遺產和總體曆史的故事而增強。但是我們很少想過從這些經過數百萬年的自然過程才產生的地貌中汲取意義。這是我關心地球的角度。我覺得有些重要和有意義的思想要超越表像才能發現。

http://www.stevenyazzie.com/

 

 

Stephen Yazzie and Before Myth and Time

 

Ted and I toured Northeast Arizona, The Land of the Painted Desert, in 2011. Our tour began with a visit to the Heard Museum, the world famous museum of American Indian Art and History. We then set out to see the ruins of Indian villages of Wupatki National Monument, the Three Mesas and the Hopi villages, the Petrified Forest National Park, and the Painted Desert. Finally we ended our tour back to the museum. Just before walking out of the museum, Ted spotted the Berlin Gallery, which hosts the finest sculptures, paintings and photographs by American Indian artists.   

 

A large 60’ by 60’ painting of landforms with bright red, green and blue colors immediately struck my eyes. In the center it seems a lady in her red costume is dancing in a spin, swirling around the green leaves, white water and blue sky. We were completely captivated by the spirit of the majestic and mystic land presented in the painting. The title is Before Myth and Time, They were just Moving Mounds. The artist is Stephen Yazzie, Navajo modern American artist. This is one of his red series of landform being exhibited in several galleries and museums in the nation.

 

Later we met the artist. Steven Yazzie gave us a special guided tour of the Arizona Art Museum, where some of his work is on permanent display. While introducing his modern art pieces, he told us how he became an artist. He grew up on the Navajo Land, started drawing female figures entertaining fellow soldiers in the first Gulf War, studied in art schools on scholarships, and made his most important debut as an American Indian artist to commission the mural for the Heard Museum. Incidentally I found that we shared a common interest in the famous American mythologist, Joseph Campbell, and his book The Power of Myth.

 

Here are his own words about the painting of Before Myth and Time.

 

We give meaning to place, no matter where we come from. It’s very human I think. Mountains especially have spirituality so other attached reinforced by meaningful stories from our families, our heritage, and our collective histories, but not often do we consider the natural processes that have taken place over millions of years to create these landforms that we pull meanings from. I’m interested in the earth in this way. I think there are some important and meaningful ideas attached to looking beyond the surface.               

http://www.stevenyazzie.com/