Courtship and another showing
Grackles are a common bird, the males of the bird world being both more showy and more vocal than the females. We have three nesting pairs of cardinals in our backyard–all spaced as to not overlap territory–and I can hear them whistling from early morning to late afternoon. Grackles, do not have an attractive song o whistle—being more of a croak. But Still they posed for me on that rail at Cat-Tail Marsh.
This piece is on its way to the SAQA trunk show, SAQA being short hand for Studio Art Quilt Association. I have been a member for many years although recently I have had concerns regarding their foray into politics. Artists have always expressed their political views in their creations, ranging from Picasso’s “Guernica’ to Steinback’s Grapes of Wrath and Tortilla Flat to Dorothea Lange’s ‘Migrant Woman’. Early in Hitler’s regime, artists were sanctioned or fled or were imprisoned. However, artists were always free to express their own views—especially in opposition to any organization.
SAQA has aligned itself to two groups espousing a particular viewpoint—and I suppose thinking they are encouraging protest against the mainstream. Unfortunately, no other viewpoints are allowed—the idea being that everyone thinks as they do. They have fallen prey to a certain social media slant that does not represent my viewpoint.
Reluctantly I sent in an auction donation and now a trunk show piece. It will be mounted nicely and be part of box of artwork sent to various places. I thought about this for a very long time; if sending in these items meant supporting their narrow-minded way of viewing the world?
Recently I tried to enter three of my fiber pieces in a local art show. They were rejected because the acceptance committee did not understand ‘gallery-wrapped’ frames.
The options for showing my work are therefore so limited, I want my work to be seen—-and maybe this group will re-consider its thoughtless.
On the other hand, I use these ‘opportunities’ to try out a new technique or way of working. This particular piece used a fusible interfacing—eliminating all the stray threads on the edges of the bird.
Sylvia Weir Art 