Artistic Perspective
Anna Marie Pavlik
- 2001
- Color offset lithograph
- Image (irregular): 20 3/8 x 28½"; Sheet: 22 x 29¾ "
- 2009-61-68
About the Print
From the Artist
A growing concern for the survival of nature and a need to understand the relationship of people to the landscape has encouraged me to explore nature-related themes.
This image is all about Texas. The state is colored yellow to distinguish it from the neighboring areas, which are more pink, brown, or blue. The map does not name Texas cities or roads; instead, round insets indicate various sculpture sites around the state.
What’s wrong with this picture? Texas is presented accurately, including the art sites, but everything else should be questioned. This tongue-in-cheek artwork challenges geography as we know it. Here, Texas stretches north to Illinois and west to California. The blue Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean are shifted westward, their waters teeming with aquatic life, mythological beings, and vessels from assorted historical eras. Out of scale, Texas extends north and south, seemingly beyond the map’s edges. New Mexico and Arizona are reversed, and Mexico appears only below California. With humor, Artistic Perspective confirms that an individuals point of view shapes and informs how she or he sees the world.
—From Brandywine Workshop and Archives records
Let's Look
- Start with the water. What do you see?
- Now look at the land. How many US states can you identify?
- Which state seems to be the most important? How did the artist express that?
- The artist included small, circular pictures that highlight art and attractions in Texas. Can you identify any of them?
- What does this map reveal about the artist's point of view about Texas?
- If you were going to make a map about your city or state, what would you highlight?
Anna Marie Pavlik
American Born Pittsburgh, 1952
Photograph by Richard Rosen
About the Artist
Anna Marie Pavlik was born in Minnesota and earned a BA in fine art from the University of Minnesota, Duluth; a certificate in drafting from Saint Paul Vocational School (now Saint Paul College), MN; and a BS in mechanical engineering. She often explores narrative themes in her work, focusing on the intaglio process and stratigraphy, a monoprint technique. Growing concern for the survival of natural areas and a need to understand the relationship of people to their environment has also inspired her to explore nature-related themes.
Pavlik participated in artist-in-residence programs sponsored by provincial, state, and national parks. Her collaborations with parks have resulted in artwork exhibited at the University of Alaska Museum of the North, Fairbanks; PRINT USA; Springfield Art Museum, MO; and publication in the Trail Guide to the Northland Experience in Prints and Poetry, published by Calyx Press.
Her etchings are represented in the collections of the Kentucky State Fair, Louisville; Hallmark Corporation in Kansas City, MO; Solender Hall, Inc., Dallas, TX; Sprint Corporation, Overland Park, KS; Tweed Museum of Art, Duluth, MN; University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, and University of South Dakota, Vermilion. She lives and works in Frankfort, Kentucky.
—From Brandywine Workshop and Archives records
Curriculum Connections
Suggested Topics for Art Projects, Group Discussion, and Independent Writing
Art
Point of View
Use a computer to make a brochure that points out important features of your state, city, or neighborhood, emphasizing those you think are most essential. Pavlik visited some of the places she highlighted in her print and used a guidebook about historic sites and art in Texas to pick out others. Do online research to find out more history, art, and attractions you might want to include in your brochure.
Scale
Imagine yourself feeling very large or very small in a space, either physically or psychologically. Create a drawing, painting, collage, or print that expresses how you feel. The work could be abstract or realistic.
Language Arts
Point of View
What does the artist's fanciful map reveal about her perspective on Texas? Cite evidence from the image.
In Your Opinion
"A growing concern for the survival of nature and a need to understand the relationship of people to the landscape has encouraged me to explore nature-related themes."
Consider Pavlik's quote about her artwork. Does Artistic Perspective reflect the spirit of her words? How? If not, why not?
Social Studies
Find the Facts
Find an accurate map of the United States and compare it to Pavlik's. What is the same? What is not? What's the most distorted feature about Pavlik's map? Track your findings on a Venn diagram.