Art and Life

Sketch of ‘The ship sculpture by Emanoel Araujo’ by Meera Rao 

The ship by Emanoel Araujo 

I visited the exhibit ‘Afro-Atlantic Histories’  at the National Gallery of Art, Washington DC on June 7 2022 and was so touched by this sculpture in wood & carbon steel that I had to record it! The label reads:Araujo's work reflects the influence of European modern art and African and Afro-Brazilian cultural histories. This geometric, abstract wood structure is a direct reference to slave ship plans (like the one depicted in James Phillips's Description of a Slave Ship, shown nearby). The 31 wood sculptures representing human forms echo images in abolitionist pamphlets of bodies piled inside ship holds, while a metal chain linked to a shackle recalls the brutal restraint of enslaved people. Translating iconography of the slave trade into geometric forms, The Ship suggests the symbolic capacity of abstraction.

The entire exhibit was very powerful with many paintings and sculptures. In fact I visited again during that week to slowly taken in the works. 

The spread on my upcycled Smithsonian Engagement Calendar -Pandemic journal 2022 week 24

The photo in the Smithsonian Engagement Calendar 2022 upcycled to my 3rd year of journaling during the pandemic week by week is ‘inland Niger Delta Artist Djenne, Mortimer Region, Mail Equestrian Figure 13- 15th Century Ceramic, collection of National Museum of African Art.  Unearthed from the archaeological remains of an urban center in the Inland Niger Delta region, this is among the area's largest surviving terracotta figures. Its elaborate dress suggests ceremonial military attire, and it may represent a warrior allied with the Malian emperor Sundiata Keita (c. 1210-60).’  As it has happened on almost every week there has been some connection between something my life to the photo on these calendars! I will chalk it up to serendipity. 

‘All Ladies Crew’ pencil, ink and watercolor by Meera Rao 

I was a small part of ‘all Ladies Crew’ of a Habitat for humanity house built at Suffolk, Va week 24 in June 2021.  I learned how to measure, hammer and wield electric saws,  drills and nail guns :)  It was a very rewarding experience and felt a good tired at the end of the day. 

Spread of upcycled Smithsonian Engagement Calendar week 24 2021 

The photo this particular week in 2021 is Koji Enokura (1942-1995) Symptom-Sea, Body(P. W. No. 40), 1972 Japan Gelatin silver print 1316 × 16%16 in. (33.2 × 42 cm)Collection of Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Enokura was a member of the Mono-ha (School of Things) movement in Japan, a group of artists who practiced "not-making" by slightly altering materials to call attention to the relationships between things. In his Symptoms series, Enokura used photography to document his own ephemeral presence within the surrounding environment. And the photo depicts opposite of what I was up to that week - making ! 

 

Awesome Nature

                                                                                    

Hi-Yu ( Abundance) Pen and Ink /watercolor By Meera Rao

I had a few holes here and there in both of my 2021 and 2022 Journals - a few weeks that I was unable to sketch for some reason or other.  I felt I should fill them up, complete the recording and then start posting - a bit unreasonable on my part but then sometimes that's how I move unfortunately. I relied on my photos to jog my memory. Now that I have filled in every single week in both the journals, hope the posting will be be easier on my psyche - even if its two and three year delayed. 

week 21 Smithsonian Engagement Calendar Pandemic Journal 2021 

The photo on the Smithsonian Engagement calendar which I had upcycled as my Covid diary / journal has Hi Yu Apples crate label, from Wenatchee, WA now in the collection of National Museum of the American Indian, The label is done in Ink on paper.  

"Before they were replaced by the cardboard boxes in the 1960s wooden boxes bearing colorful designs were used to ship fruit and vegetables. Often the designs featured Native American motifs. HI-Yu the Chinook language words meaning abundance was the name of a brand of apples shipped from Wenatchee, WA." True the word for the week, in our garden on that week the blueberries and blackberries were in abundance ! We did not get to enjoy them because the birds were having feast  and we weren't invited :) 

Week 21 Smithsonian Engagement Calendar Pandemic Journal 2022 

This week's photo in the Smithsonian Engagement calendar 2022 is "Niimiipuu(Nez Perce) quiver and bow case c.1890 Idaho. It is made from otter skin and fur, hide wool cloth, muslin, glass beads and silk ribbon and is in the National museum of the American Indian.  

On May 17 2022, I had gone to check the trees I had planed to sketch for a Tree sketching Class I had volunteered to teach later in the month at the Historical Endview at Newport News, Va. As I was walking around the property I saw a snake skin under one of the bushes. Upon further research, I learned that snakes shed a layer of their skin in on continuous piece, a process called 'ecdysis'  which occurs between four and twelve times a year. Why? While snakes body continues to grow, the skin does not! How cool is that !

Snake skin on forest floor  watercolors by Meera Rao.  

Icicles and Blooms

Icicles watercolor by Meera Rao

In the last week of January this year, we saw some heavy snow fall and with it very interesting icicle formations as the snow melted slowly from the roof top.  It is indeed serendipity when I paired it with the photo of the week in the Smithsonian Engagement Calendar 2022.  Debra Baxter's Devils Horns Crystal Brass Knuckles(Lefty) 2015 made with Quartz crystals and sterling silver was exhibited at the Renwick Gallery, Washington DC. 

Smithsonian Engagement Calendar 2022 week 5 

Relief in Full Bloom  Faber Castell PITT Artist pen by Meera Rao 

Spring came early for us last year on January 27, when we received our first shot of Covid-19 vaccine! It was indeed relief in full bloom! We then waited eagerly for the second shot scheduled in three weeks :) 

Smithsonian Engagement Calendar 2021 week 5 

Japanese flowering apricot Prunus mume 'Peggy Clarke' in the Smithsonian Engagement calendar 2021 is a digital image  by Hannele Lahti from March 2019 at the National air and space Museum, Washington DC Smithsonian Gardens. 'This deep pink, double flowered cultivar of the Japanese apricot is easily mistaken for its botanical cousin the Japanese flowering cherry. Flowering apricots are the first sign of spring, blooming before cherry blossoms have even begun to open.'