Virginia's
2002
White House Easter Egg
In
the midst of shows and pressed for time, I created it in an afternoon.
I prayed first, as I usually do with my designs. This time I prayed
for inspiration ... and speed!
It was clear to me that I must commemorate the attack on the Pentagon
in Arlington, VA which killed 190 people on September 11, 2001. This
design is of the Pentagon under a bright blue sky, with a gaping whole
in the side and an American flag draped beside it.
The
inside of the egg is first removed, usually after punching a small hole
in each end and blowing into one of the holes. In this case, I raggedly
broke through the side of the egg, punching an additional hole only
in the bottom. I cleaned, then coated the inside of the egg with black
sumi ink.
I
used a combination of gouache, colored pencils and Dr. Martin's Bleed-Proof
White on the outside. Several coats of fixative were applied in the
process to guard against color mixing. This strategy usually works great
on paper, but on the egg it was like writing on glass ... sigh.
The cracks spreading outward from the hole in the side are real, although enhanced with black ink. The flag represents the one hung from the roof of the Pentagon soon after the attack. There are 50 stars (dots) on the flag.
