Lillian Pitt is an accomplished artist who has been exhibiting her contemporary
sculpture, carvings, masks, glass, wearable art, and works on paper
for over twenty years. One of the indigenous people of the Columbia River Gorge,
she is called by
her Indian name, Wak'amu (Strongly Rooted), by elders of the Warm Springs/Wasco and
Yakama tribes. The term might also describe her art, for although her approach to
form and materials is eclectic and contemporary, her intriguing metaphors are
always rooted in her Native American tradition.
She says this about her work: “I use the ancient stories of my ancestors as
a basis for the imagery I create. By doing this I maintain the memory
of an ancient culture and keep the beliefs of my people alive. We have
forgotten how to live in harmony with nature. Accessing this vast reservoir
of traditional information and translating it into contemporary terms
jogs our memories and provides points of reference to achieving balance
within ourselves, our community and the world. My ancestors have a 10,000-year
history in the Columbia River Gorge. Much of my work has to do with
the preservation and care of the environment along this ancient waterway.”
Lillian is pleased to announce that she has won the Earle A. Chiles Aware for 2007. Established in 1983, this
is a $15,000 award given annually by the High Desert Museum to an individualfor accomplishments in
promoting thoughtful management of the natural and cultural resources of the Intermountain West. The award acknowledges
Lillian for creating images that sustain ancient Columbia Plateau cultures and beliefs, and for promoting harmony
within people, communities and nature.
Lillian Pitt was also the recipient of the Governor's Award of the Oregon Arts Commission
in 1990, which declared that she had made, "significant contributions to the growth and development of the cultural life
of Oregon. She is known nationally and internationally for her Raku and Anagama fired
ceramic and bronze masks and "Shadow Spirit" totem images
based on traditional
symbols and spirits of her Columbia River ancestors. Her repertoire
has expanded to include monumental bronze sculpture, sometimes reflecting the
theme of Salmon migration. One recurring image, "She Who Watches," is based
on a Columbia River petroglyph which represents
the last of the Woman Chiefs. The bronze mask above is one of her tributes to She Who Watches.
Lillian's art has been exhibited and reviewed in the U.S., Europe, New Zealand,
and Japan. Her work has been
commissioned by numerous museums and organizations and is in several collections,
including the University of Washington's Burke Museum, the Sapporo City Hall,
Sapporo, Japan and the prestigious Heard Museum in Phoenix, AZ. A traveling
retrospective of her work,"Spirits Keep Whistling Me Home," was
launched in 1999 at the Museum at
Warm Springs on her native reservation in Oregon and has been exhibited
at other museums nationwide. In May, 2007, her work recieved the Best in Show Award at the Second Annual
"In the Spirit" Contemporary Northwest Native Arts Exhibit. The July-August 2007 issue
of Native Peoples Magazine features Lillian and one of her cast glass masks on the cover.
With the turn of the millenium,
Lillian's art took on an even larger dimension, as she and a team of Native American artists were commissioned by the city of Portland, OR,
the Oregon Convention Center,
Portland State University, City of Hillsboro, Central Oregon Community college in Bend, and a variety of other municipalities, cultural
institutions, and corporations to create public art projects. She welcomes these opportunities
to share her Native American heritage and her ecological commitment with an expanded audience.
TO SEE LILLIAN'S WORK IN PERSON: If you'd like to be notified of Lillian's gallery openings, museum shows,
and other exhibits, click here
and include your mailing address.
CONTACT INFORMATION: Lillian Pitt can be reached
by email
and through the galleries that feature her work, including:
The Bonnie Kahn Gallery,
Portland, OR
Sunbird Art Gallery, Bend, OR
Jeffrey Moose Gallery, Seattle, WA
Images of the North, San Francisco, CA
Northwest by Northwest, Cannon Beach, OR
Gary Farmer Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
Design by Donna Cunningham of
Word of Mouth Web Design. Photos by Dennis Maxwell.
