U and Eye

U and Eye

2013

First Nations, Haida, born 1946

Robert Davidson has played an important role in the revitalization of Haida art and culture since the 1970s. The great-grandson of renowned carver Charles Edenshaw (his carvings on view in this gallery), Davidson received hands-on instruction from his grandfather and father at a young age. He has masterfully and continually explored the intricacies of traditional Haida design while also creating a recent body of abstract work in paintings and prints. U and Eye is a visual pun: while referencing the customary formline-U design and eye shapes characteristic of classic Haida art, it also serves to forge a connection—through the elemental language of color and form—between the artist and the viewer.

Silkscreen print

40 1/4 × 30 1/4in. (102.2 × 76.8cm)

Purchased with funds from Nancy and Hamilton Harris

2013.36

Provenance: The artist; [Stonington Gallery, Seattle]

Photo: Elizabeth Mann

Not currently on view

Seattle Art Museum respectfully acknowledges that we are on Indigenous land, the traditional territories of the Coast Salish people. We honor our ongoing connection to these communities past, present, and future.

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