The Fall of Sovereignty
With such a heavy heart I search for the right words to say. When I first heard the news of Russia invading the Ukraine, I sat there with a sort of numbness that quickly turned into an overwhelming sadness. Tears streamed as if they had a mind of their own.
I shake my head in disbelief that we still live in an age where there is such a complete and utter disregard for humanity; for life. Has history been so easily forgotten?
It seems so senseless to continue on with my day, posting new artworks, planning for shows etc. while the other side of the world is on fire. Seeing newborns moved to bomb shelters, missiles fired at a residential building, hearing of old Ukrainian colleagues living abroad concerned for the safety of their families...
***
When we lived in Virginia, we had a chance to tour Lincoln’s Cottage. It was an unconventional tour of an empty house with several stories of Lincoln and Mary’s time spent during a troubling moment in American history. A place of deep contemplation where such hard decisions shaped our world, our country for today. There’s a certain truth and resolution resonating throughout Lincoln’s presidency. He did what he believed in his heart to be right. Regardless of what anyone else thought, judged, said, or offered to fund. He led by example.
I wish I our current world leaders felt such a resolve...for what is right. Feel the love for not only their country, but for all the men and women who have shed blood for the sake of our freedoms, for the safety and security of our future so that we may all march forward in pursuit of life, liberty and happiness.
It's time to stand up to the bully in the playground.
***
Freedom will always win over oppression.
Feeling helpless and idly sitting by is not a position I enjoy being in so I've decided to donate work to the cause alongside Givewith.Art. For any purchase of a limited edition print on my website, I pledge to donate 50% to support Ukraine, through the end of March.
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Behind the Scenes - The Fall of Sovereignty
I made the acquaintance of some lovely ladies in Virginia. They welcomed me into their group with open arms, words of encouragement and nuggets of information. One of them was the existence of the Capitol Ruins at Rock Creek Park. Unbeknownst to most, the park holds remnants of the past, stacked up precariously like a game of Jenga. Upon doing a little research, otherwise known as googling, I discovered that these stones were likely placed here during the renovation of the Capitol Building that began in 1958. The fun fact, beside the mere sight of this treasure trove, states that these marble and sandstone pieces likely mark the East Front Facade which originated all the way back to the War of 1812…back when the Capitol was nearly burned down!
So nothing like a little piece of history tucked under the forested blanket not far from the hustle and bustle of the DC Metro. For those of you that need to see this for yourself, make your way to the horse stables at Rock Creek Park. There’s parking close by. Go through the red stables and pick up a trail on the back end. Hang a right. Less than half a mile you’ll come across a pile of rocks that don’t quite look like they belong. You have arrived. Pay your respects to these old stones and leave everything just the way you left it for the next visitor to make his way upon this unsuspecting piece of history.
This piece originally had every intention of showing the land surrounding this stone graveyard. Clearly they’d marked this spot for some time as evidence by the shrubs and trees growing around, sometimes through the rocks. But I have minimalistic tendencies on occasion and those trees distracted my gaze. So after hours of playing, I decided to eliminate them altogether to give the appearance of a more recent ruins. Not ruins that the land tried to reclaim. But this is what it looked like before, blue dress and all.
I’m not completely convinced that this piece is complete. But sometimes you have to know when to stop…come back later and pick up the pieces.
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