Day of ArT & activism

Maine Peace Walker & Northampton BOW$H organizer Beth Adams joined Codepink and artists of Draw-a-Thon II making signs to welcome the Peace Walk and Vets for Peace as they passed by in the parade.

Many streams converged on Veterans Day when Space Gallery hosted Draw-a-thon II to Bring Our War $$ Home. 30+ artists + Buddhist monks and nuns leading the Maine Peace Walk with drums and chanting + Pink women + Vets for Peace + general public age 2 to around 90 being artists or subjects + Kenny Cole's amazing show "The Hellfire Story."

 
The show features one drawing for each time a Predator Drone has delivered a Hellfire missile to Earth. These drawing hover overhead and throw long shadows, mounted as they are perpindicular to the walls. They are b&w and yellow. Red paintings of hell cover the white walls at floor level. (Kenny himself is a blue triangle in some photos. Nice job.)

The generosity of spirit on the part of participants started with Kenny and Space offering to host a Draw-a-Thon. Artists come from all over for these events.There were many young artists this time, which was good to see. Our friend and fine printmaker Tamar Etingen came from Cambridge for the day. Poet Martin Steingesser led the crowd in chanting as he recited a poem about what the CEO of General Dynamics does with all that money. Many people had their portraits done by artists who specialize in it. It was fun to watch the process and the reaction of those who posed. The artists worked hard all day. Here's an amazing wall of art to delight the eyeballs and help spread a BOW$H message.

The special presence of Veterans for Peace and Buddhist nuns and monks who had just completed a 130 mile walk through Maine was also a factor. We had greeted them from the sidewalk in front of Space Gallery as the annual Vet's Day parade passed by, and we were honored to feed them before many departed back to Massachusetts or New York. Lovely Vanessa is a new friend from the walkers who was interesting to talk with about education.

Many walk in families with young children joined the Draw-a-Thon. The age range went from 2 to about 90. Homeless youth joined in creating images of beauty and healthy priorities. People were fed. Minds were fed. The national priorities project website was consulted. What slice of pie is transportation anyway? (A depressing 3% for both fy10 and fy11.)

Breakfast and lunch were provided by Codepink Maine's hospitality wagon. Pat Taub is an amazing whirlwind on the Portland scene now and she had cleverly arranged with Local Sprouts eatery to deliver hot soup and trays of sandwiches made from local farm production.Well fed artists are productive artists!

Lora has her portrait made by Rob.

I had a portrait made wearing my pink hair by Paula Dougherty who in Feb. had made a beautiful drawing of a pregnant woman that I photographed. The flash of the photo landed in the center of the swollen belly as an orb of light. We both loved that coincidence.

That picture and others from both Draw-a-Thons are on display until Dec. 5 at the Meg Perry Center of Peace Action Maine, 644 Congress., Portland.

Cori, thank you for the beautiful garden picture.