Inspired by the global views of the Artemis II mission and the recent celebration of Easter, these are composite / collage pieces that combine the urban and the spiritual. The views are of the very recognizable Times Square, a bustling, busy and noisy melting pot of people from all over the world, existing mostly peacefully. I think that’s something important to remember, aside from the blaring media headlines.
Of course there are holy cities that are officially recognized as such, like Mecca and the Vatican. The titles of these artworks refer to a kind of ‘holy see’ of the eyes that can view any and all locations as holy. And there’s a lot more holiness yet to be explored beyond Earth, and beyond the Solar System. Earth is a gem of course in a vast cosmic ocean. It’s amazing humans have the opportunity, with growing ingenuity, to keep expanding. It can be viewed as a holy form of desire to treasure what one has, and also keep seeking and creating.
Speaking of expansion, the new art format that’s available is large public mural sizes and large acoustic panel sizes. This is more in line with sign and banner printing, as in very large. I was inspired to add this by airports and their growing art collections. Large format artwork really makes a positive impact there, such as the NASA / JFK display at Boston Logan or the simple, very large sky views; and colorful, welcoming artworks at Miami International. Even though the epic sky is overhead, a beautiful sky photo can make a public large space even more expansive and much more appealing. A sunset is one of the most beautiful sights a human on Earth can experience and any sort of colorful abstraction is like adorning the walls of ever more elaborate caves.
Art is visual art – it has that definition, of being deliberately created for that purpose. Yet so is architecture, engineering, sciences, writing and other media, and so on into the living of a life. I was inspired by these multiple interpretations, and overlapping realms, in creating Holy City I & II.
For formats and pricing, please visit the Art Shop page. These and many others are also available on the SAATCHI Art and TurningArt (commercial clients) pages. For questions and direct orders, please e-mail: sarah.ikerd@studio-shangri-la.com.