Art Reflection – Baker San Francisco artist, Gilbert Baker, and others created a rainbow flag to represent the beauty and diversity of the gay community in the 1970s. It was adopted as the Pride Flag by the LGBT Movement in 1978. This flag continues as a symbol of the LGBTQ Movement around the world. In 2003, the 25th anniversary of …

Art Reflection – Rockwell This is the sketch of a well-known piece by American illustrator and painter, Norman Rockwell (1894-1978). It seems this piece and Rockwell’s relationship with it have long histories. Norman Rockwell sketched this scene in 1953 to represent the humanitarian initiatives of the United Nations at the time. He did not complete it until 1961 when it …

Art Reflection – Bierstadt Albert Bierstadt (1830-1902) was a German-American painter who came to Colorado on an expedition in 1863. He did many on site studies of our grand mountains and returned to his studio in New York to create his masterworks on an equally grand scale. This work is 6’11” x 11’10”. Bierstadt was part of the Hudson River …

Art Reflection – #spraytheirnames During our profound weekend with Dr. Jemar Tisby, I was reminded of the public art created around the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Elijah McClain during the summer of 2020.  I was also reminded of a line from the Broadway play, A Strange Loop. When the main character is asked if he has seen Hamilton, he …

Art Reflection – Chicago This work by feminist artist, Judy Chicago, is a large installation that has filled a space at the Brooklyn Museum since 2007. This is an actual table that measures 48’x48’x48′.  It was created around the equally large hope of restoring women to history by “giving them a place at the table.” Each of the 39 place …

Art Reflection – Swinden This is a remarkable piece with an equally remarkable story of vision and service. It is one of several murals commissioned by the Works Progress Administration and the Federal Art Project for one of the earliest housing projects in the Williamsburg neighborhood of the Brooklyn Borough. William Lascaze was the architect of the project. His consideration …

Art Reflection – Reutersward Swedish artist, Carl Fredrik Reutersward (1934 – 2016) created this iconic sculpture on non-violence after learning of the death of his friend, John Lennon. It is a .357 Magnum disabled in a simple, cartoonish way. It is definitely worth thousands of heart-felt words against violence spoken and repeated through the years since its creation. This sculpture …

Art Reflection – Dixon Maynard Dixon (1875-1946) was a painter of the American West. After training at the San Francisco Art Institute he spent his years travelling and chronicling the beauty of this area. He was an Impressionist painting outside with studies of light and shadow. He is quoted as saying, “The spirit of the west sings in every soul.”  …

Art Reflection – Miro Joan Miro (1893-1983) was born in Barcelona, Spain. He painted in the Surrealism style often with very little representation. He is known for very abstracted minimalist works in a few bright colors. Padres is an exception. Here Miro does represent a village, the sky and surrounding fields. The background of this piece is quite realistic and then there …

Art Reflection – Orozco Jose Clemente Orozco (1883-1949) was one of the most famous Mexican muralists of his day. He painted in the Expressionism style with fellow artists Diego Rivera and David Alfaro Siqueiros to document events of Mexican history. This work depicts the followers of slain revolutionary peasant, Emiliano Zapata, being led to their death. All elements of this …