Sister Moon

Borrowing an image from an Egyptian wall relief, then etching it into marble which reinforces the relationship to the original, Chacona appropriates an image that must have had at one time a profound significance to those who saw it in that other distant time and culture.  Chacona takes the old and recombines it into something new; Egyptian drawings, text, photographs, and etched tile. The result is Egyptian pop art, more or less.  By reintroducing sacred imagery presented as a contemporary artwork, he raises the question as to whether or not images can still hold magic, power or significance in the later part of the twentieth century.  Is the image of a deity less powerful when seen outside of its context, or can even a public conference area become energized to some degree by the image of an ancient goddess?

George Chacona is a Seattle-based artist who applies pigment in oil on the etched surfaces of one-inch marble slabs. He invented this process 30 years ago as a rock-solid support for his painterly activity because he didn't like the "feel" of canvas or paper under his brushes and squeegees.