Tony Abeyta

Tony Abeyta was raised in Gallup, N.M. of Navajo and Anglo descent. He creates a powerful range of contemporary paintings. He explores different mediums such as oil and monotype creating a variety of pieces including charcoal drawings, large scale oil and sand paintings, and abstract mixed media pieces incorporating encaustic wax, copper and printmaking. His individual style incorporates bold colors, rich textures and representations of Navajo deities.

"I was raised in a small town surrounded by the navajo and zuni reservation, with Acoma and Laguna in my backyard. Route 66 ran through town and the railroad as well. there was always a sense that there was other places to be and I left gallup at 16 years old to study art in Santa Fe, N.M. at the institute of american indian art."

School was important, and was a license to travel to many great places. The maryland institute of art in Baltimore, Lacoste School of Art in southern France, SACI in Florence Italy, Chicago Art Institute, Haystack School in Bangor, Maine, and finally NYU for my graduate studies. Currently Tony works in both Santa Fe, N.M. and in Chicago where he lives with his son Gabriel, keeping a studio in both places.

"Living in an urban place adds an element of progressive cultural expierience. In a city there is the whole discourse of cultures, thinking, music and international art. I consider myself a regionalist, accepting that much of what I do is tied to a native culture and place. I find that art is constantly moving, reinventing and affected by the changes in our culture and its great to feel part of that in some way."

Tony works on both oil paintings and large scale drawings, and is creating a new series of large 3 dimensional sculptures as well. "I try to diversify as an artist, there are certainly many directions I take as a painter. I am concurrently working on large neo modernist landscapes, Black and white abstract bio mechanical charcoal and ink wash drawings, colorful diety paintings with abrupt textures and paint, and now scupture as well."

CV

Education:

2002 – New York University - Masters in Fine Art
1989 – Art Institute of Chicago - Post Baccalaureate Program
1988 – Santa Fe Institute of Fine Arts - Master Study Program
1988 – Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore - BFA
1987 – Studio Arts Center International, Florence, Italy
1986-87 – Lacoste, Ecole Des Beaux Arts, France
1986 – Institute of American Indian Arts, Santa Fe NM - AFA
1985 – Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Isle, Maine

Selected Exhibitions:

2008 – Heard Museum Of Art, "Underworlderness" one person exhibition, Black & White Drawings.
2008 – SOFA NYNY (Sculptural Objects and Functional Art), Blue Rain Gallery, Armory For The Arts,
New York, NY
2007 – SOFA CHICAGO (Sculptural Objects and Functional Art), Blue Rain Gallery, Navy Pier, Chicago, IL
2007 – Blue Rain Gallery, Santa Fe, N.M., Annual Indian Market Exhibition
2000 – Southwest Museum, LACMA West, Los Angeles - 10 Year Retrospective
1999 – Cline Fine Art Gallery, Santa Fe, NM, "Approaching the Unknown" (One man show)
Cline Fine Art Gallery, Santa Fe NM, ‘Native Manifestations’ (One man show)
1997 – Cline Fine Art Gallery, Santa Fe NM, Reinventions/Departures (One man show)
1997 – Institute of American Indian Arts Museum, Santa Fe, NM.
‘A History Of Santa Fe: An Allegorical Depiction’
1997 – Museum of Indian Arts & Culture, Santa Fe
‘Native Abstractions’, (Group exhibition)
Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe NM - Masters exhibition
1996 – Owings Dewey Fine Art, Santa Fe, NM - Water (Group exhibition)
Turquoise Tortoise Gallery, Sedona, AZ - One man show
1995-96 – John Cacciola Gallery, NYC - Recent Works
1994 – Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian, Santa Fe, NM
‘Translating Two worlds’-The Art of Narcisso & Tony Abeyta.
1991-93 – Albuquerque Museum, New Mexico
1992-93 – Sherwood's Gallery, Beverly Hills, Ca - Recent Works
1992 – Institute of American Indian Arts Museum, Alumni exhibition
1991 – Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore - Large scale drawing
1989 – American Indian Community House, New York - Group exhibition
1989 – Institute of American Indian Arts Museum, Santa Fe, NM - one man show.
1988 – Lacoste Ecole Des Beaux Arts, France.
1987 – Glenn Green Galleries, Santa Fe NM
1987 – Pembroke University, North Carolina - print exhibition.
1986 – State of New Mexico Governor’s Gallery, Santa Fe, NM - group exhibition.
Navajo Community College, Tsaile, AZ - printmakers exhibition

Museum Collections:

Heard Musuem, Pheonix, AZ
Millicent Rogers Musuem, Taos, NM
Harwood Musuem, Taos, NM
National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC
Museum of Arts and Culture, Santa Fe, NM: Permanent Interior Mural In Main Gallery (2000)
Palm Springs Fine Art Center, CA
Museum of Indian Arts & Culture, Santa Fe, NM
Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian, Santa Fe, NM
Montclaire Art Museum, New Jersey
Institute of American Indian Arts Museum, Santa Fe, NM
Southwest Museum, Los Angeles, CA