Bratislava?
Yup, I learned earlier this week that Bratislava, Slovakia is the next horizon upon which my art will land.
Bratislava? Really? I'm intrigued! I can't remember exactly when I registered for the Art In Embassies program that places the work of American artists in U.S. embassies around the world—it's likely to have been 10 years or more. So, just as mom might have predicted, patience pays off... eventually. The timing, however, is very interesting. And the pieces the curator has requested are even more so.
Anyone who's followed my work since the 2016 presidential election knows myriad birds have flown into, around and through my heart, soul and canvas; and, 3 of the 4 paintings the State Department has requested are from the series, Birds Fly In. In fact, 2 of these migration-inspired, avian-themed works are very recent, painted less than a month ago in San Miguel de Allende, MX. Who woulda thunk any part of the current U.S. government would want anything to do with this sort of metaphorical art? And, yet ....
Such is the kind of unexpected outcome I've come to expect from my Birds Fly In artwork. These paintings have been the catalyst for my most ambitious project to date—the BIRDS FLY IN: A Human Refuge installation that will launch at the Oliver Art Center in Frankfort, MI on August 7, 2020. Through this project, I've made art I never dreamed of making and remarkable connections with people I might otherwise have never known. So, should I be surprised that pieces from the project will soon wing their way to a country that was once caged behind the Iron Curtain? Well, as I said, I'm intrigued.
As has been the case for the past three years, my art informs me once again that there is more to the Big Picture than meets the eye: Patience, not panic, are in order. Meaning not meanness will rule the day. Resisting the temptation to get too negative about current events, I step to the easel to see what the next painting wants to be—almost always, those intuitive birds fly in.
Thanks for celebrating with me their arrivals and departures, beyond walls, over bridges!
Bratislava? Yes ....!
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