By Jan Falcone, Special to Aruba Today

Local artist Stan Kuiperi’s latest exhibit, Between Heaven and Earth: Guardians of the Landscape, has recently opened at ACCESS ART Gallery on Main St. in Oranjestad. Stan is in touch with nature so much that his latest works and exhibits focus mainly on ecology and the fragile state of Aruba’s nature. This latest is a collection of 30 paintings comprising his 2005 collection. Stan does not paint full time, but is an art teacher in one of Aruba’s high schools, so this number is impressive.

Stan believes that every visual artist should have a yearly show, not only for the public, but also to keep up his/her own production, practice and quality development. Furthermore, there is so much subject matter, exhibiting less than yearly is a tremendous loss of time and opportunity.

He focuses on the giant cactus (Cadushi Largo in Papiamento) as a symbolic icon representing all Aruban flora. The Cadushi Largo’s many beautiful and elegant “arms” point up to the sky higher than any other plants, reaching heights of up to 20 meters, remaining firmly rooted in the earth through their trunk. Standing alone or in thick rows, they resemble guardians that oversee all that is going on in their natural surroundings.

But they cannot withstand the brutal onslaught that is going against nature in Aruba. In the name of development and progress, dozens of giant cacti are bulldozed every week, along with many other local trees and plants, all around the island. This is going on at such an alarming rate that in 10 to 15 years there will be nothing left for future generations, and we will go down in history as having been by far the most destructive and uncaring generation to have lived on Aruba.

Stan believes that one of the fundamental functions of the arts is to reflect and comment upon contemporary life and society, and that it’s important to focus on the natural aspect of our existence. My belief is that, as natural beings, we can only survive and thrive in a balanced, healthy and natural surrounding.

With this collection, Stan chooses to focus on the fact that every natural form of life has a life energy equal to ours in essence, and that it’s our destiny to eventually learn and respect this.

These acrylic paintings, grouped in five series among the rooms of the exhibition space, present the symbolic giant cactus and other cactus types such as the “Dama di Nochi” (Lady of the Night), and the “Cadushi Floria” (Flower-form cactus, a variant of the giant cactus) as luminous beings, each one having a specific character and expressive force. The artist has “painted” much more than he is used to, using direct brushwork and undiluted paint. He has also expanded his use of many bright colors and even introduced the use of authentic 24-karat gold leaf to emphasize the life energy in nature. As in nature, these cacti forms look equally good standing alone or in combined groups. Some are dominant in an Aruban landscape scene. Others are frivolous and decorative, blooming and partying at night under the stars. Some become sculptures through their authentic natural forms, while yet others have a sacred aura and surrealistic ambience about them, based on their specific location on the island, as some titles suggest.

Natural earth colors and the special spraying technique he normally uses (not to be mistaken with the commercially used mechanical airbrush technique!) are still very much present in the works, as they have proven to be great means to convey undefined space and vibrant energy matter.

Stan hopes that with their specific focus will help the Aruban public expand their perception of nature and see every living form not only in its magnificent natural appearance, but also as part of a greater Creation of which every single one of us is a vital part.

“Between Heaven and Earth: Guardians of the Landscape” is brought to you by the Pro Crea Art Foundation, and will be on exhibit for another 3 weeks at ACCESS ART Gallery, upstairs above Hugo Boss on Main St. in Oranjestad. They are open daily except Sundays from 10 to 8, and can be reached by calling 588-7837 or by e-mail at: mail@access-art.org . Don’t miss this an important exhibit by local Aruban artist Stan Kuiperi of authentic Aruban landscapes!