In addition to the writing I have been doing with Thoreau and Punk, I have also been working on some Thoreauvian-Punk-inspired artwork. This piece -- "Write the Power, No. 1 - Thoreau" -- has been accepted to the first ever Thoreau Art Show for the Thoreau Society's Annual Gathering in Concord, MA on July 9-12. This year's conference, Thoreau's Revolutions, included a call for art to be be featured in a exhibition which "will focus on Thoreau’s revolutionary ideas as well as personal reflections on revolution in the context of his life and work."
Coincidentally, I had recently produced several pieces of Thoreau-inspired art for another artists call, and so I took a chance and entered this show. While I have long intended to attend the Thoreau Society Annual Gathering, I did not expect to go this year. In fact, I hoped to go once I finished my work and could potentially present at the conference. Alas, I will be able to "present," for the conference has scheduled an artists' talk for the show on the morning of July 11, and I will be speaking about this work and my ideas regarding Thoreau and revolution. My artist's statement for this piece follows:
“Write the Power” began serendipitously as the artist sat on the couch listening to music while reading, writing, researching, and sketching an idea to synthesize the worlds of Henry Thoreau and punk rock. The phrase “write the power,” which stems from the 1980’s Public Enemy song “Fight the Power,” sprang into his mind with the image of a power salute fist holding a pencil. The artist envisioned a series of mixed media pieces featuring revolutionary writers, artists, and musicians, celebrating the power of language and the written word. This piece is the first one completed in what he hopes will be a large body of work.
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