As we come ever closer to the election, my latest work – WHO IS NOT A MIGRANT? – seems even more significant.  When I started the work I had been closely watching birds, bees, and butterflies as they make their way to their nests and homing grounds to regenerate, raise their young safely.  It caused me to think about the migration of human beings.  What were the similarities?  Were there any differences, really?  I did a lot of reading on the subject before I began the work, and the piece quickly came into being.

Here is what I wrote in August:

I’ve been thinking about boxes lately – what they signify – for keeping, saving, sending, storing.  A box of photographs, a box of clothes, a box of food.  And I’ve been thinking about migration a lot.  Who and what migrates?  A migrant takes what is needed – children, food, a change of clothes, or nothing at all.

MIGRATION is the traveling of humans, animals, fish, birds and insects, even trees, for a less harsh environment in which to prosper. 

My question then is:  WHO IS NOT A MIGRANT?

This work contains a series of eleven boxes, most of them made from a sheer but stiff cotton organdy fabric.  I want the boxes to feel vulnerable and fragile – as surely the migrant must.  Each box is a little wobbly or pushed-in looking, a little uncertain.

Inside many of the boxes are scrolls of language about the migration of animals, insects, birds, fish, trees, and human beings.  Inside others are things saved:  bees, a feather, some dried garlic, a skull.  A memento mori for a former life turned into a new life with the bittersweet memories, the shadow of death, and the understanding that this is what we all do – we are all migrants.

I think often of the children who were taken from their parents at the border and have not been reunited with them.  These families were looking for a safer place to live and were shown that theirs was not a safe migration at all.  The butterflies had an easier time for sure.

This work, along with many other previous works, will be included in my portion of our Open Studios at 26 Split Rock Cove, on November 1, from 11 am – 4 pm. 

We would love to have you, please kindly let me know what time to expect you by emailing sandy@26splitrockcove.com, or calling 207.596.7624. Masks are required.