Large Monotype titled “Seeds of a New Forrest” [SOLD]

Navajo artist Tony Abeyta (1965- ) is one of the best and most collectible contemporary Native American painters.  Abeyta was educated at Santa Fe's Institute of American Indian Arts, the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, and overseas in Italy and Southern France.  He later returned to school, taking postgraduate classes in art and filmmaking at the Chicago Art Institute. Though best known for his unique landscapes and richly textured mixed media depictions of Navajo Yei figures, Abeyta works comfortably and successfully with a variety of media.

Monotype printmaking is one of the many areas in which Abeyta excels.  Monotype printing is a method of printing in which an image is created on a smooth, non-absorbent surface (usually a copper, zinc, glass or acrylic plate) and then transferred to a sheet of paper by pressing the two together.  The initial print is often augmented with additional paints or other materials, creating textures that are unique to the medium. Each monotype is, as the medium’s name implies, unique—they are not produced in multiples.

This monotype—titled “Seeds of a New Forrest” and dated 1989—is very large, measuring nearly four feet in height by three feet in width.  It is not marked with any chop marks but was identified by the artist as most likely having been created at Graphics Workshop. As per Abeyta’s usual, the piece is sharp, vivid, and expertly composed.  The four figures depicted here are nearly identical in size and shape, creating a symmetrical composition. This symmetry is broken up by variances in color—each figure’s mask and major outlines are similar in color, but their details vary greatly. Monotype printing allows for unique textural variations, which add even more depth to the figures in this image.

“Seeds of a New Forrest” commands attention—not just because of its size, but also because of its vibrant colors.  Abeyta’s bright blues, greens, pinks and purples work perfectly together, overlapping and combining with one another to create a wide and varied color palette. Yellows and reds appear too, mostly within the figures’ frames, adding warmth to the center of the piece. The soft white color of the paper itself is used to brilliant effect in the figures’ bodies and headdresses, an effect that the artist most likely created by scraping lines of ink off the initial image prior to pressing.  This brilliantly composed image is an excellent illustration of Abeyta’s skills as both painter and printmaker.

Condition: very good condition with minor imperfections around the edges of the paper

Provenance: this Large Monotype titled "Seeds of a New Forrest" is from the large collection of a New York resident

Recommended Reading: 100 Artists of the Southwest by Douglas Bullis

Artist Image source: unknown.