Sherman Beck USA, b. 1942
Family Gathering, 2022
Acrylic on Canvas
48 1/2 x 60 in
123.2 x 152.4 cm
123.2 x 152.4 cm
8513
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This painting portrays a multi-generational family gathered around the trunk of a baobab tree. The people range in age from elders to infants, and are dressed in contemporary clothing. Within...
This painting portrays a multi-generational family gathered around the trunk of a baobab tree. The people range in age from elders to infants, and are dressed in contemporary clothing. Within the trunk of the tree, spectral embodiments of the family’s ancestors can be seen. The word baobab originates from medieval Latin, and means “father of many seeds.” Many contemporary people translate the word as “the tree of life.” For Beck, this family portrait is meant to imply more than many generations of a single family. It is also meant to suggest people’s kinship with the ecosystem. The baobab tree, if properly cared for and conserved, can share a bountiful symbiotic relationship with humans, providing dozens of life sustaining and economically valuable resources. Says Beck, “I try to suggest more than the instant, more than a snapshot in a painting.”