This edition was made for Menlo College’s 85 Years/ 85 Artists Exhibition (2014). Woodcuts and monoprint on Sakamoto paper. Approx. 14″ x 17″. Edition of 5 artist’s proofs. $65.
Statement about this piece that appeared in the exhibition:
This piece is based on two events that occurred in 1947. Nobel laureate Karl von Frisch, during his study of honey bees, discovered that bees perform what he called the “waggle dance” in order to communicate with the rest of their hive. Their position and direction of movement during this dance indicated to other bees how far and in which direction they needed to travel to find a particular food source.
Also in 1947, the National League of Women Voters released a pamphlet in recognition of the 100 year anniversary of the Seneca Falls convention. Called a “Brief for Action,” it questioned the status of women in 1947, asking if the nation had progressed as much since 1848 as they thought they had. This document reads as a kind of progress report, asking questions that I see echoed in the current news media: is being treated “equally” being treated fairly? Have we progressed as much as we think we have since 1947? What are we moving towards, and in which direction should we move? These writers were calling attention to something in the distance, something that they felt should be sought by other members of their community.
