Maria, 'Cage (crying angel)' 7-12-2020
neighbors enjoyed this one, a lot of good conversations
Corn has flowered inside and outside the cage but the stalks are stunted. Rob Dower suggested nitrogen and it restarted the corn and created blossom. We will get some corn from the plants outside the cage, inside probably not.
Corn is growing fast. Probably realizes, like the sunflowers, it is very late to just be starting out.
Praying Mantis adopted a sunflower and stayed there for days. Bees don't visit so much. Last year a grasshopper did the same thing quietly eating the green leaves around the flower. Maria planted corn to replace the dying sunflowers
Using leftover fencing, a crying angel, Diane Dancers welded iron and rusting sculpture. Things in the household, an assemblage talking about pain and grief. Pain is the base of the work, hopefully it will incorporate some joy with time.
Maria took the angel off the dirt onto the rocks, trying to make it better, formalize, tidy...
We bought a plant which brought to mind mourning, shifting from the cage to the relationship between the figure and the plant.
Maria planted seeds to hopefully change the space. Sunflower seeds and wildflower seeds. Repeating what Lora had planted in other parts of the garden. To protect the seeds Maria put down green baskets and then covered the baskets in medical gauze to protect the seeds from birds, keep the seeds moist. More bandages were added thinking of hospital... gardening becoming a metaphor for nursing and the healing process. Watering and applying gauze every day caused the sprouts to come up quite quickly.
The sunflowers are growing like... sunflowers.
Stu Schwartz:
looking good Maria!
I like this.....especially the dog!
Richard ChauDavis:
I loved it when Maria added the dog, she is constantly trying to make it better, more hopeful.
Irene Gruman:
I love the brilliant flowers and their insect devotees. I was very touched by the photo of sprouts that the chubby angel would see if he lifted his head - comforting.
Richard ChauDavis:
Maria keeps trying to bring joy into the piece. Trying to make the pain better.
