Diviner from the collection of Anderson Gallery - BSU

Viewing artist Paul Stopforth Clear context

Diviner by Paul Stopforth

Diviner, 2005

Oil on wood

81 x 95 in (205.74 x 241.3 cm)

Inv: 236917

Location: Moakley Center

Made on an unusual cut-out birch wood support, the crouching figure seems at once grounded and weightlessly suspended in the palms of the four wing-like hands around him. His stretched out right hand reiterates the axis of larger hands and is poised in the position of a diviner whether casting sacred nuts or bones, reading animal tracks on the ground, recording results of mystical numerology, or consulting an ancient text. It is also the hand gesture of the painter. Both professions can diagnose aff afflictions, decode seemingly random patterns, serve as repositories of memory and wisdom, and bring insight into the human condition.

Email Facebook X LinkedIn Pinterest

From Anderson Gallery - BSU

Paul Stopforth

Trinity, 1994

Gouache on board

78 x 24 in (198.12 x 60.96 cm)
Paul Stopforth

Malagasy Mourner, 1992

Oil on Canvas
Paul Stopforth

Alchemist, 1992

Oil on Canvas

40 x 60 in (101.6 x 152.4 cm)
Paul Stopforth

The Initiate, 1991

Mixed Media

72 x 48 x 3 in (182.88 x 121.92 x 7.62 cm)

View All Artworks

Additional Details

Additional Artworks

Trinity, 1994

Malagasy Mourner, 1992

Alchemist, 1992

The Initiate, 1991