"America Over the Last 250 Years" by Sarasota School of Arts and Sciences Students

There are many ways to celebrate our country's 250th birthday other (and more appropriate) than cage fighting on the White House lawn. Case in point: The digital quilt created by students and arts educators at Sarasota School of Arts that "reflects what America represents to today's youth, both past and present." I love it. 

Participants contributed a single square for inclusion in the work. Deciding upon an image that represents their view of America had to have been challenging, especially when the project's scope included the influences of technology, the arts, industry and history on our country. What would you choose what to depict from such a wide spectrum of possibilities? 

Students were encouraged to incorporate red, white and blue into their works. This enabled the squares to be arranged so that the work as a whole looks like an American flag from a distance. It cannot have been easy to achieve this effect. Kudos to whoever was tasked with figuring out this part of the project. To see the work in its entirety, click here. 

Not surprisingly, the quilt includes a huge variety of images. An early photograph of the Statue of Liberty (one of the first ever taken) abuts a painting of red, white and blue cupcakes (yes, please!) This image declares the student's support for Team USA in the World Cup. (In case you aren't following the tournament, Team USA has won its first two matches and is looking good.) 

The quilt also includes images you might not immediately associate with our nation's history. Not shown, for instance, is a reproduction of an ad for "Bohemian Rhapsody," a movie about singer Freddie Mercury. "We will rock you," it proclaims. Okay. I haven't seen the movie, so my initial thought was that the image went to the Constitutional right to freedom of speech. But then I dug a little bit deeper. A quick Google search revealed that the movie explores themes of identity, chosen family and acceptance. I am totally on board with a depiction of these aspirational values in the quilt. 

Perhaps not surprisingly, one of my favorite squares was this recreation of the iconic painting "Washington Crossing the Delaware" by Emanuel Leutze. I am always drawn to the reimagining of famous works of art by contemporary artists. Alternative versions of Leutze's painting have been created by Robert Colescott, Vanessa German and Kent Monkman. Fun fact: Monkman's monumental painting "Wooden Boat People: Resurgence of the People" was commissioned by the Met for its Great Hall, where it hung for three months.  But I digress. My point is that this work, primitive as it might be, spoke to me. It makes me happy to imagine a child being inspired to create his or her own version of Leutze's iconic painting. 

I'll leave you with an image that depicts a much more sobering view of our country's history. A quick look at this painting shows a figure on a distant shore reaching out towards America and all of its promise. "Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," right? But as we all know, the United States has some dark history, a piece of which is depicted here. 

When you look more carefully, you see that the man is chained. The reason? He is awaiting passage to the United States on a slave ship. The painting makes me think of Kara Walker's etching "no world" from her "An Unpeopled Land in Uncharted Waters" series. As an aside, "no world" is included in the "Something Borrowed, Something New" exhibit now on at Sarasota Art Museum. Both works are powerful remembrances of an ugly part of our country's past. 

With that, I'll leave you with an exhortation to stop into City Hall and see "America Over the Last 250 Years" yourself. Congratulations to the teachers who developed this project and to the students who participated. And thanks to the City of Sarasota for making the work publicly available. The "quilt" shows, once again, something beautiful can be created when we work together.