LUCIA MAYA
(Santa Catalina Island, California, 1953)
The torrent, 2003
Oil on canvas
Francisco Oller Art Museum Collection
The symbol of the female figure has been one of the artist’s most explored themes. In this artwork, the artist envisions characters placed in a sublime and surreal landscape. On the left, there is a woman dressed in black with fiery hands emitting warmth and oriented towards the earth. She gazes towards the far right where a waterfall made up of cool tones reveals two figures embracing. For alchemists -those who studied material transmutations- fire represents transformation and regeneration. Rain, on the other hand, represents fertilization and the descent of divine qualities onto the earth.