Being out of town I was unable to make it to the art
collection by Monday night. So I tried
hard to find the pictures of the collection online. I found some art pieces and thought well I
will just use one of these so I can get this work done. Then I thought to myself “no, I can’t do that
because I will be cheating myself out of the experience I am supposed to have!” So I decided to wait until I could get to see
the collection up close and personal.
The art piece I chose actually had been one of the pieces I found online
but the connection with the piece didn’t happen until I was standing in front
of it. It didn’t take me long to know
that this was the piece I wanted to blog about.
The piece is called “Flight to MKE.”
As I stood and looked at the piece I noticed the focal point, which is the center of attention as talked about on pg. 50 in the book "White Space Is Not Your Enemy", to be the
airplane. The way that I saw the plane
flying seemed to be flying away from the city but with city in tow. This confused me a little because it seems
totally opposite of the title. With the
plane being the center of attention it allows the eye to move to the right
along the lines of the plane and the two strings used to tow the city. The flying plane and the lines create movement, which is principle no.4 that was talked about in chpt. 5 The pink hues in the painting gave a calming
sense among what looks like an explosion happening. The thought of explosion comes from the burst
of clouds and smoke that the plane seems to be flying away from. There are some
orange tones that mimic a subtle fire.
The tell-tale signs that indicate it is the city of Milwaukee are the
Allen Bradley clock and a remnant of what looks like Grace Lutheran
church. Both of these Milwaukee staples
are on the South side of Milwaukee. This
leaves me with a negative feeling about the picture because I could take the
inference that she is saying that only the South side of Milwaukee is important
and needs to be saved. The asymmetrical
balance of the picture also communicated to me tenseness, anxiety and
unbalance. So now let me tell you what
the picture meant to me. I am going
through a lot of change in my life. I
recently was let go from my job and am divorcing my husband of 17 years. This leaves me in a place of discovery and
the desire to create a whole new life for myself. As I saw the plane leaving I compared it to
my own desire to leave the city and start anew.
The strings attaching it to the city made me connect to my own feelings
of not wanting to leave what I have built behind. The student’s lives that I have impacted in
my job mean the world to me and the last thing I want to do is leave them in
the hell that MPS has created for them.
There are so many forces and obstacles working against them and there
are not a lot of people who genuinely care for their well-being like I do. Man let me tell you even as I am typing this
blog I am bursting with emotions. These
kids depend on me and the day they found out that I was let go they protested
in the hallways, in the streets and on social media. The two groups I founded Ladies First and
Made Men came together and made our mission statement come to life. The mission statement is to inspire youth all
around the world to find their worth and their voice while breaking down
barriers. Their voices were heard and the
powers that be told them that they see the worth in their fight and they are
going to give me the opportunity to appeal and they will vouch for me to get my
job back. The problem is I don’t know if
I want to go back. I don’t know if the
right thing to do is go back. I feel as
though there is a bigger platform I must create in order to truly make a
difference in young people’s lives. Everything
happens for a reason. Coming across this
picture has inspired me to continue to find my true new path and that where
ever I go and whatever I do, I will always keep them with me!
