On view this August at Acosta Strong Fine Art in Santa Fe, New Mexico, is the anticipated showcase for Native American artists J. Dylan Cavin (Choctaw) and Blair Robbins (Osage). Titled Beyond the Plains,the show combines both artists’ focus on “the land” as a central theme. While Cavin draws and paints directly on historical documents, Robbins uses a variety of media, often incorporating watercolor and wire sculptural elements.
J. Dylan Cavin (Choctaw), This Indenture, ink and colored pencil on land deed, 107⁄8 x 167⁄8 in.
“We both honor and find inspiration from our Native American heritage as we realize our visions in contemporary ways,” Robbins says of the artists’ similarities. “Our mediums may differ, but we share bonds. Key among them is achieving a sense of emotional depth and presence in our subjects. We are storytellers. Elements in our work include landscape and subject, be it a horse or a cowboy. I love that we both use line, but so differently.”
Cavin’s works have always centered on works on paper, including drawing and painting directly onto historical documents such as land deeds, tax rolls and ledgers. “For this show, I’m continuing that core approach but also pushing it in a couple of new directions,” he shares. “First, when a composition on paper feels like it wants more room, I’ve been translating it into larger acrylic paintings on canvas—a way to keep the work fresh while working around the natural size limits of antique documents. Second, I spent time in New Mexico doing reference photography and research, and that trip brought hollyhocks and roadrunners into several new pieces.You can’t really do a Santa Fe show without them.”
Blair Robbins (Osage), Last Glow Before the Veil of Indigo Dusk, original watercolor on aqua board, 24 x 36 in.
For Head West, depicting a horse and Native American figure, we see an example of Cavin’s composition that needed “room to breathe.” The artist adds, “The original ink drawing was done on a railroad ledger, and that source document brought an underlying narrative of Manifest Destiny and Westward Expansion to the piece—themes that felt fitting to carry forward and amplify at a larger scale.”
J. Dylan Cavin (Choctaw), Head West, acrylic on canvas, 24 x 36 in.
Robbins’ new body of work leans toward abstraction and gesture as she strives to capture the motion and presence of her subjects. “I love the intensity of watercolor and the range of effects that I can achieve using no-brush techniques,” she says. “Spontaneous reactions intensify the creative process as quick decision making is essential. My work tends to be multi-layered in color and meaning. I’m beginning to play more deliberately with shape and empty space, allowing areas of the panel to remain open so the eye can rest and the gestures can breathe.”
Desert Symphony is a playful work, made with loose brushwork on cradled wood panel with accents of steel, aluminum and silver-plated wires and graphite markings. “The pinks of a twilight sky swirl and billow, shaped by pushing pigment with pieces of baguette while spraying a fine mist onto the squeezed pigment,” Robbins describes. “From memory, the Southwest landscape evolved as I imagined a symphony unfolding as I painted. Staccato notes became the pinons dotting a hill, the darkening, pink-bellied cloud a visual crescendo. Then the wire horse sculpture exuberantly gallops into the scene, carrying echoes of times past into the present.”
Blair Robbins (Osage), Desert Symphony, original watercolor on cradled wood panel with accents of steel, aluminum and silver-plated wires, graphite markings, 18 x 24 in.
Carlos Acosta, the gallery’s co-owner and director, adds, “Together, Cavin and Robbins demonstrate the vitality and diversity of Native art today. Their work honors the traditions of the Plains while refusing to be confined by them. Through experimentation, innovation and personal vision, both artists reveal new possibilities for Indigenous storytelling in the 21st century.”
Beyond the Plains will be on view August 13 through 22 at Acosta Strong Fine Art. —
Acosta Strong Fine Art 200 Canyon Road » Santa Fe, NM 87501 » (505) 453-1825 » www.acostastrong.com
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