“At home with family”(2021)
"At Home With Family" (2021) by Julie Green portrays a family dining together at the dinner table enjoying a meal from a Japanese style bird's eye view. When I stepped into the gallery, the title of the artwork really grabbed my attention. In addition, I was attracted by the art itself, for example, the material, pattern and colors. The artwork was created on Tyvek with acrylic paint, glow in the dark paint, fabric, thread, and 24K gold. As I read the story and the purpose of the artwork, which was a black male who was wrongfully prisoned, I felt depressed but I can never feel their pain or whatever they went through. No one can feel other people's pain besides them. According to Siegler Chapter 5 Civil Rights “a man on his knees, in chains begging to be recognized for dignity”. This quote really relates to the story behind this inspiring artwork, it reminded me of the civil rights back then and how black people are being arrested and not having rights. In addition, they couldn't defend themselves and this reminded me of civil rights, since the story behind this artwork was focused on how the black male “wrongfully prisoned”. After I looked at the artwork and read what it was about, I felt that I can relate to the story but in a different way. I came to the United States when I was 12 years old for a better life and education. I didn't know how to speak English at all besides my own language which is Arabic. I lacked communication, had no friends, missed family and friends, and wanted to go back to my home country where the rest of my family was. I felt depressed and actually felt like I'm in a prison between four walls that had nothing to do and just accepted the situation. I was underage, and couldn't make any decision on my own. I always remember them and how we used to sit together in the dining room, eat, have conversation, and enjoy the time together. I felt like I’m in prison and depressed for a year. To a 12 years old which is basically young, that was a lot, but I had no other choice, just accept the situation.
“Thank God I’m Home” (2019)
The very second artwork that also grabbed attention is the “Thank God I’m Home” said Marcel Brown 2019. The artwork is acrylic on tyvek. Nathaniel Green worked on this painting for a month. During that time, he swam laps in Oregon State University's Dixon pool and thought about composition. The paint on the pool's bottom is turquoise and unbleached titanium. This artwork has almost the same idea as the previous one I discussed which is wrongfully prisoned. This is the story of an 18 year-old teenager who was unfairly accused of murder. He was condemned to death and was released after serving ten years in jail for a crime he did not commit. Family is the most important thing in life to rely on and they are the one that care and want you to become a better person. When I read the artwork and he was prisoned for a crime that he did not commit, that really touched me. We all can feel this by just reading what the artwork is about, but we can never feel or express how they feel, because 10 years and not seeing your family is a lot of time. I can relate to this but in a different way, I came to the United States when I was 12 years old. I missed the rest of my family members so much and also certain foods and chips flavors. I decided to book a flight a couple of years later. The flight tickets were booked in 2020. At that time I felt so excited that I'm going back home. But unfortunately, Covid-19 hit and it was world wide, everyone was actually in prison because no one can go outside during that time. That was a shock to me because I was preparing for the flight and I was imagining the moment that I’m going to see the rest of my family members and go back home. Furthermore, because of the Covid-19 pandemic, three of the family members passed away. That made me feel awful. As it mentioned in the bell hooks reading “that men were the enemy”. When I read this quote, it stuck in my head, and to me Covid-19 was my enemy because it took a lot of people away that I really loved and had never seen for a long time. Covid was my enemy; it took away happiness and good people. I was about to say thank god i'm home, but that never went right as It was planned to be.
These are the foods that I really miss and have never eaten for a long time. Most of us who came to the United States relate to Brown’s story in different ways, such as having a good time sitting with family and eating your culture's foods.
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