Title
Ollin Rotunda Mural Prototype I Painting
Creator
Description
This painting is the selected prototype for the Ollin Rotunda Mural at the University of Texas, San Antonio. Satisfying the requirements of the commission, the design conveys three components: Texas history, Indigenous history, and science. The central image is the ollin symbol, an ancient Aztec hieroglyph heralding movement and change. It is surrounded by the seven caves, Chicomoztoc, the place of Aztec origins as depicted in the codices. The composition of the seven caves also resembles an abstracted rendering of the dendrites in the human brain. The blue field contains neurons and engrams of the brain. For the scientists who selected the artist's design, the dotted patterns on the surface of the blue field resemble DNA. The concept for the ochre yellow band is derived from ancient Indigenous pictographs at Monte Albán and Maya disks used in the ball courts. This final outer ring includes symbols that represent the Pecos River area that borders Texas and Mexico. The colors are inspired by multiple sources, including colors of the Maya manuscript known as the Dresden Codex and ceramics from colonial Puebla, Mexico. Acrylic on canvas. Dimensions: 20" x 20"
Subject
Date
Contributor
Image
https://artist-encuentro.elevator.umn.edu/fileManager/bestDerivativeByFileId/68c0c9cb2485d47109095b60
Identifier
SB_UTSA_Mural_Ollin_1996_02
Access Rights
© 1996, Santa C. Barraza. This image may not be reproduced for commercial purposes without the written consent of the artist. The image may be used for educational personal individual uses and with credit to the artist. Please contact the artist for commercial purposes, reproduction and/or publication: santa.b@santabarraza.com