Sky Pape Fine Art Drawing

06-03-05
airborne
digital photograph

I woke up really early, got on a plane, fastened my seat belt, stowed my carry-on luggage beneath the seat in front of me, and located the emergency exits. I listened to the rhythmic breathing of the sleeping man beside me, sipped my complimentary beverage, glanced at my watch, and thought about making something for this project. The clouds out the window caught me and I drifted, feeling, at 35,000 feet or so, temporarily relieved of the obligations and concerns I'd left behind. There's an aspect of traveling that I connect with freedom, privilege, and adventure. Then there is the matter of passports, green cards, immigration, security, and one is not ever supposed to forget terrorism, or the fear of it. If you're a loner, which artists tend to be, it doesn't matter if you're always a stranger in another land. It helps you remain objective. You can become a stranger in your own land too if you leave to follow your dreams elsewhere. Doesn't the nomad still have an identity? When I was very young, looking at the atlas, I couldn't understand my mother's explanations of why the countries were different colours, and why the borders were drawn where they were, and why we had countries at all. I liked the different colours, but it seemed it could all be so much simpler. So many lives saved. Now I understand the complexities and importance of saying you are this or that, or belong here or there. But still, I am just me, in the clouds or on the ground, and part of me still believes that there's fantastic truth to be found in things so much simpler.

View the art spark of 06-03-05