Book filled with colorful visions

Page 12

REVIEW

Norval Morrisseau: Travels to the House of Invention

By Norval Morrisseau and Donald Robinson

Key Porter Books

$39.95 (hc)

I remember when I first saw a Norval Morrisseau painting up close. I was in an art gallery in Edmonton, casually looking over the paintings and sculptures, when I rounded this little corner and saw his painting. It was breathtaking. What struck me right away was the fantastic array of colors. I was overwhelmed by the colors. I couldn't take my eyes away from it. The images, the forms and lines started to register in my eyes later, but nothing was as impressive as the colors in this painting.

Morrisseau at the time had become something of a cause celebre in Edmonton. He had been seen on the streets, selling his paintings for bottles of booze. Sadly, that was just another battle he was losing in his war with alcohol. A photo of him sitting on the sidewalk with a small canvas on his lap ran in one of the local newspapers. To be honest, he did not look very good.

That image of him, drunk and homeless, contradicted with this glorious painting that was mesmerizing me with its color.

Now, many years later, Key Porter books has published a book filled with his paintings, both recent and archival, as well as some essays he's written about his art. The 66-year-old Ojibway artist, who now lives in Vancouver, is just as prolific as ever.

Once again, the power of his colors struck me. The paintings are well reproduced in the book, but they're much smaller and lose some of the power of the originals. These prints will impress you, but they are just a small taste of Morrisseau's talent.

His paintings are full of lines, connecting all the forms and images together. The beings within the paintings, whether animals, humans, plants or spirits, are either emerging from one another or connected by the lines.

The philosophy is very simple: all things are connected and are full of life.

But his essays about the House of Invention that give us some other insight into his art.

"Before the settlers and priests came from the Old World in Europe, the Native people all over America used their imaginations freely. There was a vast amount of culture. I believe the people were going to the House of Invention. By being unconditioned they were able to travel easily on the inner highways, right to the source of all knowledge and invention."

Morrisseau is not just an artist, he's a Grand Shaman. He's depicting dreams and visions that he's had whenever he visits the House of Invention. To him, this is the place were all human creativity comes from - it is the source all the inventions and works of art that humans will create.

The House of Invention also determined his incredible use of color.

"Color will make things brighter. We can learn how to heal people with color. The House of Invention gave me the color . . . All the color spectrum was there. So this is soul imprinted or imbued with all these colors. That's how you come to be a master of color. My art reminds a lot of people of what they are. They heal themselves."

As someone who's seen one of his original paintings, I can testify to the "healing" aspect of his work. His work warms you, calms you and mesmerizes you. Recent discoveries in psychology have determined that colors can affect mood. As far as Morrisseau is concerned, colors can also physically heal you.

Morrisseau is one of the most gifted artists this country has ever produced. As far as I'm concerned, the raw emotional power his work conveys rivals Picasso and Van Gogh. If they don't enrich your soul, then there's something really wrong with you.