by Angel Diaz

Artwork Description

Imagine

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Multimedia on board 48” X 4856”, 3” 1993 Early in 2005, Christo and Jeanne Claude started installing a gargantuan project called “ The Gates” in NYC Central Park. 7,503 gates with their free-hanging saffron colored fabric panels seemed like a golden river appearing and disappearing through the bare branches of the trees. This project was being built right in my back yard; therefore I followed its construction from a very close range. While construction was in progress, I ran into Christo and Jeanne Claude. They were checking on the recently placed steel bases along the pathways. Two standing fluorescent orange plastic brackets guarded each base. During our brief encounter we talked about the magnitude of his project and world peace. I mentioned my artistic works and their purposes and commented on the beauty of the project and the brightness of the brackets. To my surprise he graciously handed me a bracket and told me to take as many as I needed. To serve my purpose I took two more for my next project. A spectrum of primary colors serves as a backdrop to a white swastika, shown in its original ancient squared position. The heart of the imagery is a glass globe of the world and the three bright fluorescent orange –propeller like– brackets call attention to it. The swastika is rotating, smearing the colors to represent diversity leaving a circular footprint. The word “imagine” sits in the top center of the painting. The word tilts to the right to echo the motion of the rotating brackets. It aims to represent a utopian world of peace and harmony living within the cosmic rhythm of the universe. “Imagine" is a work that is perhaps a continuation of our brief encounter. I chose the swastika because it is a very old symbol traditionally viewed as a sign of peace, good fortune and well being amongst several cultures around the world. It is a symbol in both Judaism and Buddhism, as well as a Nordic runic emblem and a Navajo sign. It aims to talk about peace from an historical and chronological perspective. I wanted to bring attention to the benign origins of this ancient symbol and how it can be used for its original positive purpose.

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