picking myself up

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On election night as I watched the states turn red one after the other, I
just could not sit there anymore. But I couldn't tear myself away. I had
this horrible feeling building up inside of me. Anxiety, frustration,
bewilderment. So I picked up some paints and started. The colors calmed
the turmoil inside.

This is the product of my election night turmoil.

I'm calling it "Dialogue". At first, I wanted to name it "Political
Dialogue", but ended up simplifying it. It has to do with the fact that
he, Bush, kept on lying and it just didn't matter. It's almost like a
switch gets turned off when people are presented with facts. They are just
-absent-.

Interestingly, the picture that I drew my inspiration from is an old
photograph from one of the Japanese internment camps. The chairs were
built for children by the residents of the camp. They were made from
discarded scraps of wood since the federal government provided little in
the way of furniture.

"Dialogue" oil, 20 x 16 inches

~bridgette

why oh why did kerry concede now ??

it's so sad. i knew the bastard would win but i had a last minute hope against hope that he'd lose... we were so so close...

sinta and minda DRUNK OFF THEIR ASSES with yet another admirer ...
 

Restoring A Hijacked Faith

Another political piece in the form of book art to ponder...

a political piece

Here is a mixed media piece that I did purely to vent my frustrations with
the current political environment in this country. It's pretty literal and
I don't usually work in this way. But it helped me to release some pent up
anger and feelings of helplessness. Before I began this piece I wanted to
address what I called "The amnesia of America". I get so mad when I listen
to the Bush administration lie and lie again and again and it doesn't
matter!!! I really don't get it. And the public (or the media) just
accepts it. Besides current events, there are plenty of other issues in
this country that people seem to conveniently forget or turn a blind eye
to. For example, racism. I've heard people say that racism is not an
issue anymore. Huh? What country do these people live in? And the civil
rights movement was not too long ago! It was only 40 years ago when people
of color had to sit in the back of the bus. Recently the Young Republicans
at Berkeley (could be another school, but for sure it was in CA) had a bake
sale mocking affirmative action. I can't remember the exact numbers but if
you were Native American you could buy a cookie for 5 cents. Latino and
African American, 25 cents. Caucasian, $1.00. You get the idea. How
disgusting!
Anyway....I collaged a bunch of articles and photos from the newspaper on
current events that particularly irk, sadden, and/or frustrate me. Then I
painted the flag on top of the collage. And then I added a pencil drawing
of myself. Duct taped my mouth and blindfolded my eyes.
Censorship is unamerican. But it seems to be becoming the new american way
of life.
~bridgette

Photo of Bridgette

Here's the most recent picture of me ~Bridgette

dia de los muertos

Here is a small piece of art that I did for an ATC swap with the Day of the
Dead theme. It measures 2 1/2 x 3 inches.

hey guys - I have a project that i'm putting together. I'd love your input on it. I want to go to the Philippines and shoot a documentary about young women in Manila who are trying to make it in the world. I was inspired by a young woman who was my mother's masseuse when I was in Manila. Her story was fascinating to me. She had moved to Manila from a small town, to work for an American family. But she moved up from working as a maid to starting her own small business as a masseuse and beautician, going from home to home on recommendation. She's going to school in computer science, and was awesome to talk to - I'm wondering what happened to her.
Also, my mom had put together a microloaning bank a few years ago to lend to small business owners in manila. She met some really interesting people and she's totally supportive of my idea (!).
I've been meeting with people who've done similar things and connecting with political ppl the parents know over there (the ambassador, manang jopie (uncle jun's daughter - the super-uncle who put estrada in jail). I'd love to have one of you guys come over with me when I do this. It will probably take about a year of planning and I'm applying for a Fulbright. However I will probably take a trip to manila for a few weeks in the summer to get the "lay of the land" - who's up to going with me ??