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All Souls Surfs Up Green Thumb Buddha
2008
90 3/4 x 66 3/4 in. (230.51 x 169.55 cm)
James Barsness (Bozeman, MT, 1954 - ) Primary
Initial Public Offering: New Works from SJMA’s Permanent Collection, March 1, 2014 - August 24, 2014, New Wing, First floor, Gibson Family Gallery and Plaza Gallery, San José Museum of Art.
Initial Public Offering: New Works from SJMA’s Permanent Collection (2014)
Jim Barsness explores the theme of contemporary spirituality in his fantastical, humorous, and often erotic paintings. Using drawing and collage, he incorporates numerous cultural and religious references, from artist Hieronymus Bosch (ca. 1450 – 1516) to Tibetan mandalas, to create densely physical and metaphorical paintings that illuminate every dimension of human behavior. Barsness based All Souls Surfs Up Green Thumb Buddha on the Buddhist belief in the duality of good and evil as innate aspects of life, two sources of energy that devotees use on their pathway to enlightenment. Barsness’ Buddha-like figure rides on top of a wheelbarrow filled with skeletal remains. His stylized arms and hands fall into natural positions that evoke balancing on a surfboard. Though the hand gestures resemble traditional Buddhist mudras, they can be interpreted in a number of ways—from the “slayer” mudra to the “OK” mudra—which are references to skating and surfing culture.
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All Souls Surfs Up Green Thumb Buddha
Mixed Media (2D)
200890 3/4 x 66 3/4 in. (230.51 x 169.55 cm)
James Barsness (Bozeman, MT, 1954 - ) Primary
Object Type: Mixed Media (2D)
Medium and Support: Acrylic collage on canvas
Credit Line: Gift of TJ Dermot Dunphy and Dunphy Family Foundation
Accession Number: 2012.10
Exhibition
Initial Public Offering: New Works from SJMA’s Permanent Collection, March 1, 2014 - August 24, 2014, New Wing, First floor, Gibson Family Gallery and Plaza Gallery, San José Museum of Art.
SJMA Label Text
Initial Public Offering: New Works from SJMA’s Permanent Collection (2014)
Jim Barsness explores the theme of contemporary spirituality in his fantastical, humorous, and often erotic paintings. Using drawing and collage, he incorporates numerous cultural and religious references, from artist Hieronymus Bosch (ca. 1450 – 1516) to Tibetan mandalas, to create densely physical and metaphorical paintings that illuminate every dimension of human behavior. Barsness based All Souls Surfs Up Green Thumb Buddha on the Buddhist belief in the duality of good and evil as innate aspects of life, two sources of energy that devotees use on their pathway to enlightenment. Barsness’ Buddha-like figure rides on top of a wheelbarrow filled with skeletal remains. His stylized arms and hands fall into natural positions that evoke balancing on a surfboard. Though the hand gestures resemble traditional Buddhist mudras, they can be interpreted in a number of ways—from the “slayer” mudra to the “OK” mudra—which are references to skating and surfing culture.
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