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Canto II (2022 Relief etching and acrylic on canvas 244 x 183cm, One piece)
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Español
February 4, 2024
by Thomas Powers
I've always made prints, but I never had my own press nor the space for one. So, there were many years between print projects. Moving to Mexico I built a studio and purchased a press. And, yes, I mostly have been making prints.
Mexico has such a rich history in printmaking, like the Taller de Grafica Popular. There are also lots of printmaking workshops particularly in the city of Oaxaca, and of course the artist Guadalupe Posada work is everywhere, you can't help but be pulled into it.
I chose to work large as I wanted the prints to have the same impact as a painting might have.
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Summary: Canto II
Dante invokes the Muses, the ancient goddesses of art and poetry, and asks them to help him tell of his experiences.
Dante relates that as he and Virgil approach the mouth of Hell, his mind turns to the journey ahead and again he feels the grip of dread. He can recall only two men who have ever ventured into the afterlife and returned: the Apostle Paul, who visited the Third Circle of Heaven, and Aeneas, who travels through Hell in Virgil' Aeneid. Dante considers himself less worthy than these two and fears that he may not survive his passage through Hell.
Virgil rebukes Dante for his cowardice and then reassures him with the story of how he knew to find Dante and act as his guide. According to Virgil, a woman in Heaven took pity upon Dante when he was lost and came down to Hell (where Virgil lives) to ask Virgil to help him. This woman was Beatrice, Dante' departed love, who now has an honored place among the blessed. She had learned of Dante' plight from St. Lucia, also in Heaven, who in turn heard about the poor poet from an unnamed lady, most likely the Virgin Mary. Thus, a trio of holy women watches over Dante from above. Virgil says that Beatrice wept as she told him of Dante' misery and that he found her entreaty deeply moving.
Dante feels comforted to hear that his beloved Beatrice has gone to Heaven and cares so much for him. He praises both her and Virgil for their aid and then continues to follow Virgil toward Hell. www.sparknotes.com
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Thomas Power Thomas was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut in 1953 and raised worldwide. He received a BFA in painting from the Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD (1976), and an MFA in study arts from Queen's College Graduate School of the Arts, Queens, New York (1979).
His work has been exhibited at the Baltimore Museum of Art (1976), Queens College (1978), Gray Art Gallery, NYC (1983), Dead Blimpie Show, NYC (1985), Yonkers, New York (1989), University of Rutgers, New Brunswick, New Jersey (1990), Lenox Art Gallery, Lenox, MA (1997), Berkshire Community College, Pittsfield, MA (1999, Amy H. Carberry Gallery, Springfield, MA (2002-2003, 2015) Celaya Institute of Art and Culture, Celaya Mexico (2022) Casa de Europa (2023) MacDowell fellow (23).
In the late 1970s, Powers was a musician, appearing in CBGB's,Max's Kansas City and the Uncle Floyd Show. In the 1980s, Powers company Artibus installed shows for: James Turrell (Whitney Museum of Art, PS1), Donald Judd (Leo Castelli Gallery), Dan Flavin (Museum of Modern Art), Tom Wesselmann, Steve Reich, Sol Lewitt, NEW YORK. In the 1990s, Powers illustrated and designed interactive games and animations. In 1993 Harper Collins, New York published the book, The Table and the Chair. IVI published the interactive game Louis Cat Orze (1995). Powers was the art director for Hard Press Publishers from 1996 to 1998. He taught digital media arts as a tenured professor at Springfield Technical Community College, Springfield, MA, where he established the Department of Animation Design and Interactive Media (1998 to 2015).
Thomas Powers lives in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, where he designed and built his house and studio.
www.tompowers.art
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