Triton Museum Drawing Exhibition 12/11-3/4/09-2nd Place Award!

Last night was the opening reception for the Triton Museum's annual drawing and printmaking exhibition. I'm impressed that the rain did little to keep the crowds away from an uplifting visit to the art show. The museum staff hosts quite a reception so perhaps I shouldn't be surprised. However, I was indeed surprised to see a second place award posted next to my charcoal drawing. It's both unexpected and gratifying to receive added encouragement for my creativity. The drawing is a study for a painting of a migrant field-laborer harvesting cauliflower. It has been on deck patiently waiting to be made into a painting. Maybe this is a sign to move it up in the lineup.    

Triton Museum of Art

The Art of Labor and the Dance of Labor

Agricultural labor is certainly backbreaking work and remains a politically embattled subject. It's also something that everyone is involved in on some level since we all eat. In California one would have to be quite insulated to be unaware of the sources of their food. A short drive in any direction eventually features the colorful dots of migrant laborers amidst green fields of one crop or another. I took a closer look and spent some time observing the workers. What I found and what appeals to me, underneath the ruffling blanket of politics, is the timeless beauty and clear purpose found in the act of harvesting. Difficult as it may be to stoop for hours in the midday sun, the field-laborer is connected to the earth in an artful and unique way. It may be a stretch to call it a dance of labor but that's truly how I see it.