ANIMAL/ANIMISMO
Location: Festival Pavilion at Fort Mason Center, 2 Marina Blvd, San Francisco, CA 94123
Preview Gala – October 26, 2016
Show Dates – October 27 - 30, 2016
(Thurs. - Sat., 10:30am - 7pm | Sun., 12pm - 5pm)
mano de cobre, 2009, Acrylic on Canvas | 102.5” x 59.5”
Trotta-Bono Contemporary presents a themed exhibition of works by Internationally acclaimed Cuban artist Jose Bedia. The works will be curated alongside fine and rare antique Native American Art. Animal / Animismo will explore the nature of animal iconography and animism in both Bedia’s work as well as the art of these indigenous cultures. The exhibition will delve into Bedia's deep understanding and passion for Native American art by linking these important tribal pieces to his transformative paintings.
This exhibition has been curated to compliment the overall theme of the The San Francisco Fall Antiques Show - Animalia: Animal Imagery in Art and Antiques. Jose Bedia excels in this subject matter. He has been influenced by Native American Art, animism and animal iconography since his early career and days collecting. We are honored to be a part of this years fair.
Simba Mating Season, 2013, Acrylic on Canvas, 70” x W. 98”
isto psakahanj, Mixed Media on Paper, 50” x 38”
NWC Knife Pommel – Tlingit | circa 1820
El Retorno de Aquella Furia Ciega, 2007, Acrylic on Canvas, 73” x 174”
Early Zoomorphic Stone Club – Northern California
Jose Bedia (b. 1959) is both a master painter and a multi-disciplined student of the arts. He studied at the Escuela de Artes Plasticas San Alejandro in 1976, and at the Instituto Superior de Arte in Havana, Cuba, in 1981. Bedia became the artist-in-residence at the State University of New York in Old Westbury in 1985.
Jose has educated himself through experiencing and studying tribal art and cultures both in the field and academically. From the age of 18, Bedia has immersed himself with cross-cultural customs and imagery that possess wondrous symbolic meaning. Whether he is living with the Sioux in North Dakota or witnessing the Holy Week Ceremonies of the Cora Indians in the Sierra Madre mountains, Bedia takes copious notes and sketches to supplement his memories. He maintains a vast collection of tribal art and an impressive library. Upon his return to the studio these become his muses.
Jose Bedia won the 2010 Beijing Biennale with his celebrated work, “seguido por la tormenta intrepido”. His paintings are in important private collections as well as the collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, The Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Phoenix Art Museum, the PAMM, and many more. The artist currently lives and works in Miami, FL.