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Walton Ford. Pancha Tantra (2009)

by Walton Ford(Favorite Author)

4.79 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

3836515342 (ISBN13: 9783836515344)

languge

English

genre

Nonfiction

publisher

Taschen

review 1: I discovered this magnificent book several years ago in the small bookshop section of a Provincetown gallery. Initially I thought I was looking at a modern version of an Audubon book, but as I started to turn the pages, I realized that something was not quite right in the animal scenes depicted here. At the time, I had never heard of the Indian Panchatantra, so I was really not prepared for what I was seeing, and I was amazed at the intensity of those drawings. So, it was that at the next opportunity, I purchased the book. I looked, and looked, and looked, and watched, and scrutinized each scene: what is compelling in this book, what makes for this "intensity" I just alluded to, is the simple fact that those animals are acting out human flaws as they are wont to do in fab... moreles. Only this time, we do not just hear; we see...
review 2: This collection of Ford's large-scale paintings covers most of his work from the past 20 years. It is amazing how consistent his vision has remained over this period, owing not to artistic stagnancy, but instead to a passionate vision that is both unique and powerful. The comparison made by one reviewer is that Walton Ford's large-scale watercolors resemble a meeting of J.J. Audubon and Hieronymus Bosch, and I would say it's very apt. In the world of modern contemporary art Ford is something of a pleasant anomaly, making art that is accessible and thought-provoking, incorporating elements from the masters of the Renaissance, the Baroque period, the Surrealists and, of course, Audubon, to make something that still feels very original. Thankfully, Taschen has released a book that is worthy of the art it depicts; It a huge tome, weighing in around 3.5 kg, 350 pages long, about 12" wide by 16" tall, and is printed on a thick, semi-glossy paper stock. 'Pancha Tantra' is the perfect showcase for one of the world's best living artists, at a price that is shockingly affordable... I've paid literally three times as much for books of this quality.Compared with his last monograph, the well-designed but slim 'Tigers of Wrath, Horses of Instruction' -- which is only about 80 pages long and features much smaller reproductions, making details hard to examine -- 'Pancha Tantra' feels like a treasure trove of art, every page revealing another incredible, stunning work. As the paintings are presented in chronological order, the reader becomes a kind of naturalist, following the evolutionary development of Ford's vision, as various birds and mammals take on complex metaphorical significance. The European Starling becomes his favorite ornithological avatar, taking on it's tiny wings the weight of English colonialism in the 18th and 19th century. It reappears again and again, in oriental and African locales it doesn't belong, singing in a Rhino's ear, harassing an elephant already in a frenzied state of must, and blown up to fantastic dimensions, fed ridiculous amounts by dozens of other species, all indentured to it's oppressive bulk, dedicated entirely to further fattening a bloated empire.His newer works move away from predominantly depicting birds, just as Audubon moved on to his less famous 'Quadrupeds of North America' after completing the 'Birds of America'. His scope becomes wider, taking in the entire history of humanity's relationship with the animal kingdom. They have been our nightmares, hunting us in the darkness before we discovered the Promethean qualities of flint, and mastered both fire and spear-point. They've also been our gods -- the Egyptian pantheon in particular, with the cat-headed Bast, jackal-headed Anubis, and falcon-headed Horus perhaps being indicative of our earliest deities, as are the totem-gods of the Native American peoples. And then they became a living resource around which our lives revolved, depending on cattle as the Masai tribe still does, or as the Huns and Mongols and the other Steppe nomads once relied on the horse (worshiping a primitive horse-god, making alcoholic beverages from fermented horse-milk, hunting and conquering on horseback, going so far as to drink their mounts' blood and urine when water was unavailable; and when they died, eating them, using their skins for warmth and finding purpose for every part of their anatomy). Dogs and cats have been loved as family members for thousands of years, even as their wild cousins, wolves and tigers, have been cursed as mankillers and pests that slaughter livestock, hunted to near extinction.There are few artists who are so clear-eyed in their vision, and whose talent and intrinsic value is so evident. His ambitious course is charted in great detail, but besides a brief introduction, critical essays are omitted, are perhaps unnecessary. What is included is a fascinating appendix which provides annotations by the artist on various paintings, as well as some of the many texts that Ford uses as starting points, providing factual, historical and mythical foundations to build upon. 'Pancha Tantra' is essential and endlessly rewarding; I don't know how many times I've gone back to it, and will continue to go back to it. Among the hundreds of art-books in my collection, this is certainly my favorite. less

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