Woodcut "The Golden One" 2022 - (FOR SHIPPING: Select A3)

Hand printed on 250 gsm Acid Free black paper.
Limited Edition of 25.

Dimensions: 24cm x 37cm

FOR SHIPPING: Select A3 

I carved this woodcut plate 7 years ago, inspired by the Muiscas, as a way of honouring the great Muisca Civilisation of Colombia. I titled this piece ‘The Golden One’ in honour to all the Muisca Kings that once existed.

The Muisca (or Chibcha) civilisation flourished in ancient Colombia between 600 and 1600 CE. Their territory encompassed what is now Bogotá and its environs and they have gained lasting fame as the origin of the El Dorado legend. The Muisca have also left a significant artistic legacy in their superb gold work, much of it unrivalled by any other Americas culture.

According to legend, the Muisca king would cover himself with gold dust during a ceremony, after which he would dive into the Lake Guatavita from a raft and his people would throw precious jewels at him to appease the underwater gods. Later on this ceremony became known as the ceremony of ‘El Dorado’. Within Muisca society gold was highly sought after, not for its material value but for its spiritual power, its connection to the deities and its ability to bring balance and harmony within Muisca society.

About the artist:
Rodriguez Reyes was born in Curillo, Colombia in 1996 and became an internally displaced person at a young age, due to Civil War in his home country. He spent his early childhood with his family in Bogotá D.C. and moved to Ecuador at the age of nine where he officially became a refugee with his father and two brothers. At the age of sixteen he moved to New Zealand and entered the education system, where he turned to art as a creative and emotional outlet as the significant language barrier inhibited him from immediately building social connections with his fellow peers.