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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 1, 2002)
FEBRUARY 1, 2002 Smoke Signals 7 Grant Brings Bartow Exhibit to Hallie Ford u Continued from front page in Bartow's work, it occurred to me that every painting and sculpture, every carving, every print possessed a persona. My eyes bore into Othello, (one of Bartow's more prominent pieces) while his, conversely, bore back. I waited for him to say something. "Oh yes, that's one of my favorites," said the lady working behind the desk at the entrance. "Isn't that one just great?" They're all great, if you must know the truth, some obviously greater than others, depending upon what you're looking for. I can almost feel the hot, moist breath of Crazy Mad Coyote's fang-laden mouth. 'And Siel An gry actually threatens, telling that to stand be fore an enraged bear must be one of the most frightening experiences around. You can hear the low guttural growl. But strangely, "vivid," and not "morbid" as some might think, describes Bartow's work. There is never a whiff of absolute violence or death in his work (in my opinion, this is art remember?), though occasional pieces may have a somber tone about them. All his work, however, has the hall mark of great, and truly profound art like it or not, just try taking your eyes off of it. Bartow chuckled when I mentioned how nice it was to see an artist dabble in various medi ums. "Oh, I don't dabble brother," he said. "I live it." The exhibition catalogue bears the same name Rick Bartow: My Eye and supplied a good deal of biographical information, some of which must have been difficult to provide given its outright frankness. Of Yurok heritage, Rick was born December 1946 in Newport, the son of Mabel and Richard Bartow. He lives in Newport to this day, living in an ancestral home that spans five generations. Richard died while Bartow was just a boy, and he was later sent to Seattle to live with his aunt Amy, who studied art at the Uni versity of Washington. Amy encouraged him to pursue art, and with the support of his mother, stepfather and aunt, Rick had achieved some prominence by the time he graduated from high school. The Chairperson of Western Oregon State College's art department saw Bartow's work at the Lincoln County Fair, awarding him first prize and giving a valuable contact. Not surprisingly, Bartow selected Western as his college of choice. Married and graduated in 1969, Bartow was drafted for Vietnam, ending up a teletype op erator while a sergeant in 72 Bravo Company. An accomplished musician, Bartow also joined a band that played officers' clubs and more importantly, hospitals. Two years in Viet nam and first-hand experience with death and dying didn't exactly inspire him to new heights. And following his return in 1971, Bartow entered into a decade of darkness, highlighted by post-traumatic stress dis order, alcoholism, and divorce. Art then became a form of therapy to Bartow in the late 1970's and the 1980's, and who knows; maybe that's why he began to churn out some of his most prolific work. He made loads of friends in the artistic community, and routinely began to draw upon Native roots and animistic themes. By the mid 1990's Bartow had gone international, not only traveling around the world to places like Japan and Ger many, but also incorporating cross-cultural themes into his work. Like always, he preferred to stick with the indigenous vein, enjoying in fluences from Japan and the Maori of New Zealand. Asian elements would continue to find their way into his work, even now, as evidenced by Gathering and Shoki the Demon Queller. The catalogue that was produced through the Tribe's endowment runs a list of Bartow's achievements awards, fellowships, and exhib its around the world. The lists run a few pages long, demonstrating just how accomplished the man has become at this point in his career. Traveling naturally is indigenous to the artis tic profession, but Bartow said he will stay put for a while, sharing times between his five "third world" studios but consistently not stray ing too far from Newport. This particular exhibit features 56 works, which I understand is but a sliver of a frac tion of a percent of what the artist has done in his career. But all the more, its worth checking out, especially knowing that the exhibit was funded almost entirely by a grant from the Spirit Mountain Community Fund. My Eye will move throughout the country for two more years following its run at Hallie Ford. Rebecca Dobkins, who serves as curator of the exhibit, was thrilled. "I'm really excited about this exhibit," she A j-'O 0 J J- '-ft' M ' ' , said before the opening. "And we are so grateful to the Community Fund, because we would not have been able to do it without them." She also oversaw the exhibit's opening, which spanned two days, and on January 19 boasted a daylong symposium bringing in other notable Native artists like Hyacinth David (Nuu-cha-nulth), Joe Fedderson (Colville), Harry Fonseca (Maidu), Lillian Pitt (Warm Springs), Gail Tremblay (Onondoga and Micmac), and Eliza beth Woody (Warm Springs). The symposium itself was facilitated by Dr. Gerald McMaster (Cree), Deputy Director for Cultural Resources at the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC. B o j . ' - - - ' , I TTSi r-t? If' t- , ! f ' i , , ! S ' II )v L M1 7 i b - "v ; -I . I f -J - I W i ii uj' i . .. ; " t-v. It rmaimimmmm't : ' : i I 1 i V . ; ; ' . ' . - n' , : V v.p.. I - f ! i j - - -Tim if i1 1 1 1 . j-; A No Name This 1993 woodcarving by Rick Bartow is untitled. Bartow lives on the Or egon Coast in Newport. His grandfather was a member of the Mad River Band of the Yurok Tribe. Bartow honors his ancestry by incorporating Native themes into his artwork. 4 Strange, But True... This mixed me dia woodcarving entitled Busy Walker was com pleted in 1995. Because of an endowment by the Tribe's Spirit Mountain Community Fund, Bartow's art will be on display in Salem at the Hallie Ford Museum until March 16.
