Artwork > Translations > connected art reflecting empathy (c.a.r.e.)
Making time and space to be together
Link 1: "Making time and space to be together" submitted by Tova Speter
Link 2: Wood Spoons, Cherry wood, tung oil & beeswax finish, submitted by Dave Zucker
Artist Reflection: In our home, cooking and eating meals are events where we make time and space to be together, but even the process of creating this work created opportunities to connect to a variety of people: talking with the neighbor to collect some wood from her recently-felled cherry tree, making a tool with a good friend to aid in splitting the logs, quietly carving with the shop door open and engaging with passers-by.
Link 3: It's hard to feed the world, poem, submitted by Maya Bernstein
Artist Reflection: I was so moved by the simplicity, elegance, uniqueness, and beauty of each of the four wooden spoons. I thought of them as metaphors for the theme of caring for others; it made me think of a mother spoon-feeding her baby, that desire we have to care for one another, to nurture one another. And then I was struck by the enormity of the task. The sonnet I wrote is a reflection on the skill and empathy we need to feed one another - literally and metaphorically - and the feeling of being overwhelmed at the level of devotion needed to engage in this work.
Link 4: Balanced Breakfast?, Papercraft/Mixed Media, submitted by Becky Smith
Artist Reflection: The poem made me think about the multitude of reasons for food instability in the world, and I wanted to capture that in a quirky way. I thought about how there is plenty available but how much is lost to waste, so in my piece the earth is literally spilling its grain to point out the imbalance. I wanted the materials to feel somewhat natural, and for the spoon to stick out to put the solution opportunities in the hand of the viewer.
Link 5: New Surge, photograph submitted by Topher Cox
Artist Reflection: One consistent I have kept in my life since I was a youth is having my breakfast in front of the TV. During these strange times, I tried to keep this in my mornings…but, I found there were times where I just couldn’t watch the news in the morning anymore.
Link 6: “Gazing into the Unknown” submitted by Sara Roizen
Artist Reflection: I had an immediate visceral and emotional response when looking at the photograph "New Surge." The pandemic has seeped into every corner of our lives, including early morning rituals such as breakfast. There is a felt tension that exists between living our daily lives, while simultaneously being faced with the immensity of the unknown due to Covid times. As the viewer gazes towards the TV screen with the news title, there is a sense of gazing directly into the unknown. After writing this phrase on paper, I intuitively gathered some of my stones and gems and arranged them around the words. This was my way of engaging in a small grounding ritual to build some physical and emotional scaffolding around these challenging times.
Note: This chain was started with a submitted community response to the prompt: How have you cared for others or how others have cared for you during these challenging times? The artists did NOT see the reflections written by the previous artist, only the image of the work and the title. The reflections were revealed only when the chain was complete. The six links in the chain are intended to offer a creative way to connect and offset the six feet of physical distance we need to keep from each other in order to care for each other.
Feeling inspired? Create your own artistic response to this chain and share on instagram #translationsart.