Seeing Purple/ Seeing Red: A virtual exhibition, live from October 5th to November 3rd, 2020.
Seeing Purple/ Seeing Red was a political snapshot
during the most contentious election seasons
in recent American history.
Ella Watson, Seeing Purple. Oil and cold wax on canvas. 48 x 96 inches, 2005.
In 2005, fledgling artist and Virginia Commonwealth University student, Ella Watson, found inspiration in a Newsweek article entitled “Seeing Purple.” The piece chronicled the political journey of rising star, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, and his ability to cross the aisle.
Watson created a 4 x 8-foot painting made of cold wax and oil paint in shades of red, white, and blue. Resembling satellite photography of churning storms covering planet Earth, the piece was a metaphor for the status quo of American politics, and the idea of bipartisanship (purple) could quell tensions. Watson entitled to piece Seeing Purple.
After college, Watson lost track of the painting and presumed it was destroyed. Fourteen years later, the painting resurfaced.
Jason Baide, Bozeman, MT. Code-Switcher. Silver, steel, and paint scrap. 2.5 x 2.5 x 0.5 inches, 2020.
Watson tore the painting into smaller squares and gave them to artists and friends across the country. These collaborators were assigned the task of making a new piece of art out of their scrap.
The only requirements were:
1) The scrap of the painting must be included or referenced in the completed work, and
2) the work discuss life and events in the post-Obama/ Trump era.
Recognizing this second stage of the painting, this collaborative project was named Seeing Purple/ Seeing Red.
Jamie Boling, Arizona. Tired of Winning.
Enamel and painted canvas on panel.
8 x 10 inches, 2020.
The virtual exhibition was the result of this endeavor. Participants come from across the country including Virginia, New York, Iowa, Colorado, Texas, and Montana to name a few. Artists coming from numerous creative backgrounds engaged in the exercise, such as sculptors, painters, quilters, printmakers, bead and quill artists, ceramicists, and more. Not all the participants are trained artists; in fact, participants include a speech pathologist, a political scientist, a homemaker, and even a diplomat.
Given the COVID-19 Pandemic, and the fact that Watson herself is a highly immunosuppressed individual, Watson was not inclined to bring all the pieces back into a gallery space where people could congregate. Hoping to reach a wider audience, this collaboration existed online at www.SeeingPurpleSeeingRed.com, a website designed by Watson including images, artist bios, artist statements, and an essay by Watson.
Raul De Lara, Texas. Sculptor, Mexican Citizen, DACA recipient since 2012.
Dryback!
Wax from SPSR painting, sand, steel, cotton, pine, lacquer, wood glue, water, 2020.
Viewers could also download an image of a scrap from the site, and create their own artwork at home. For example, an elementary homeschooled class in Floyd, VA, taught by artist Lore Deighan, created pieces illustrating their interpretation of the political upheaval in raw dashes of color and simple forms.
A handful of works were posted starting October 5th, 2020, with new posts being added Monday - Friday, until the 2020 elections on November 3rd. After the election, the site was taken down.
Rather than providing all of the pieces at the launch of the site, 1-3 works were posted every day. Each piece had temporal space to breathe and engage the viewer singularly, similar to individual works in galleries that are given ample physical space, allowing the viewer to engage each work in a private and unique conversation.
Viewers were urged to check in daily through the month of October to engage with the new works incrementally.
Participants’ bios and images are still available on Instagram under seeingpurpleseeingred and Seeing Purple/ Seeing Red on Facebook.
