Harvest Panel, Dreams Writ Large
The Harvest Scene is a large pictograph of the in the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park. It is an example of the Barrier Canyon Style of rock art, which predominated on the Colorado Plateau from 1,500 to 4,000 years ago. This pictograph features large drawings of figures, some of them interacting with plants and animals.
Naturally, as one tries to take in a piece of art like this, one wonders what the artists were trying to capture, what message were they trying to leave? A figure to the right (my previous post) shows a spirit supporting maize and welcoming animals. This suggests that spirits influence or control the growth of crops, and animals to be hunted. A multitude of tall and mystical spirits, with horns or feathers or hair, lacking arms and eyes, looks down on the people, so their presence will not be forgotten. Perhaps these figures came to life in the dreams of the artists.
For scale, a previous post with a tall, modern human:
www.flickr.com/photos/jeff_mitton/37974148494/
Harvest Panel, Dreams Writ Large
The Harvest Scene is a large pictograph of the in the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park. It is an example of the Barrier Canyon Style of rock art, which predominated on the Colorado Plateau from 1,500 to 4,000 years ago. This pictograph features large drawings of figures, some of them interacting with plants and animals.
Naturally, as one tries to take in a piece of art like this, one wonders what the artists were trying to capture, what message were they trying to leave? A figure to the right (my previous post) shows a spirit supporting maize and welcoming animals. This suggests that spirits influence or control the growth of crops, and animals to be hunted. A multitude of tall and mystical spirits, with horns or feathers or hair, lacking arms and eyes, looks down on the people, so their presence will not be forgotten. Perhaps these figures came to life in the dreams of the artists.
For scale, a previous post with a tall, modern human:
www.flickr.com/photos/jeff_mitton/37974148494/