Gene Kangas ArtWork: Mask Print Series

By comparison with the BIG CREEK SERIES and LONG PRINT SERIES, some of the MASK PRINT SERIES portrayals are monumental in scale, measuring 40 inches wide by fifty-two inches high (sight size). Masks typically serve one of a few basic purposes: protection, disguise or concealment, ritual, performance or fantasy. While some occasionally overlap, the vast majority of everyday uses of masks protect wearers from potentially harmful external factors. Masks are designed out of varied materials such as paper, cloth, grass, leather, metal, shell, beads and carved of wood or stone. Sometimes they are painted with symbolic designs and vivid colors. The haunting and paradoxical FISHERMEN OF LAGUNA SERIES of prints (inspiration for the Mask Series) directly resulted from interactive personal experiences with a unique culture in the Philippine Islands. Those unforgettable images led GENE to begin investigating the idea of the "mask" as integral to a related set of prints. MASK prints can be purchased through CREEKSIDE.