Elliot Wall, Блис Белай (Bliss Belay or Becoming Pure), 2016

We are excited to feature this painting in our upcoming exhibition Understanding Ourselves at the Chehalem Cultural Center. You can listen to Wall and others discuss their work at the virtual opening on Fri Feb 5th at 7pm PST. Click here for event sign up.

In this image three women materialize by the side of a pond in a rural Russian landscape. They are the Heron Sisters from a Siberian-Tunguskan folktale; herons that flew down to earth, smashed themselves into the ground, and instantly became three beautiful maidens. In the sky we see a bright meteoroid flash, alluding to the devastation of the Tunguska Comet of 1908 that flattened 80 million trees over 830 square miles of Russian forest. Wall states that the three women represent how “The Past is innocence, the Present veiled in shadow, and the Future being revelation, when an abrupt, illuminating, purifying Cosmic Event elevates consciousness beyond the Self and the world.”

A special thanks to the Yamhill County Cultural Coalition for its generous support!

Elliot Wall website

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