These Days
"Bleeding Tree and Fire"
"The Flag, the Church and the Military"
Doing art--using art as my voice--helps keep me directed and grounded despite being worried and deeply saddened about the troubling state of affairs in the world. The two paintings posted here—“Bleeding Tree and Fire” and “The Flag, the Church and the Military” reflect my concerns and help me to document, in my own way, these days.
In the tree painting nature is talking and sending a message of being severely wounded. The creeping fire surrounding the tree represents many things—climate change, global warming and the smoldering, painful embers within people’s hearts at the many injustices to life on the planet.
In describing the painting with the helicopter, I ask the question: What is so significant about July 1, 2020? It is the one-month anniversary of the brutal disruption in Washington, DC of a peaceful protest regarding the killing of George Floyd. It is thirty days after a show of force where the world saw tear gassing, officers on horseback, helmeted Park Rangers, and heavily armed police, attacking the protestors so that President Trump could walk to the front of St. John’s Church to pose for cameras, holding a Bible aloft. A few hours later, in an apparent attempt to intimidate, two Army National Guard helicopters hovered over the protestors--one as low as 45 feet. I am incensed at this show of intimidation and force. This painting’s inspiration comes from a photograph I took on March 9 of this year from my hotel room window that looked directly onto St. John’s Church, the Church of Presidents. The church is central to the area where the protesting occurred. Little did I know that that site would soon be in the middle of an attack. The honor of the Church of the Presidents was sullied on that day of June 1, 2020.
Please do everything in your power to vote away the entirety of this administration. Stay safe—and use your voice to protest in whatever way suits you. Do not remain silent.
Thank you and stay safe and well.
My artwork is available for sale. Contact Mary Lou Dauray with any questions.