Virginia Stearns

Day of the Dead Altar for the Extinct Ones, 2016

FREE STANDING SCULPTURE mixed media  
60 x 18 x 18 in
152 x 46 x 46 cm

Artist's description: "As massive human development dramatically alters the planet’s natural world, hundreds of species of wildlife are disappearing with barely a mention. These are unique beings hundreds of thousands, or millions of years in the making we will never see again, essential members of rapidly shredding ecologies. Their demise might be mentioned in a nature journal but it never makes the front page of our newspapers. This loss of so many innocent and beautiful life forms makes me deeply sad and I wanted to honor them. Borrowing from the wonderful exuberant Mexican tradition of the Day of the Dead, I have made an altar to honor a representative few. Celebrated at the time of the year when the veil between the living and the dead is believed to be the thinnest (November 1st), the altar is decorated in brilliant colored fabrics, sequined and plastic flowers, lace, special objects and comic skulls and skeletons. Photos of ten different animals including frogs, bats, birds, butterflies, a tortoise and a beautiful leopard are included. These are just some of those lost forever to human destructiveness. Many more should be honored as well."

This sculpture is not available, but the artist would be interested in a commission.

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