Phuong Pham
Our daily lives are often a turbulent mess of stress, schedules, jobs and other obligations that can make us feel confined by our daily lives. This work of art was inspired by the daily storms many Americans face everyday but it is the idea of freedom and liberty that cuts through this fog; bringing back the focus that makes America the country that it is. In this work of art you see the Statue of Liberty standing proud amongst crashing waves, holding her flame above the storm: giving guidance and light to anyone needing the power of freedom in their lives. Her determined gaze invokes the freeing of strength although surrounded the chaotic swirling storm of life. Her raised arm, straight and unbent, daring the storm to deny her the right to pierce the darkness with her burning light. Her regal expression rendered to display that freedom and liberty are of the highest ideals. Beneath the storm lies the broken shackle, unseen to the viewer, symbolizing the daily struggle of the storm, seemingly erasing the American ideals form the American mind. This work of art reassures the viewer that freedom and liberty will always defeat the storms of life. I chose water color for this work of art because of the difficulty and fluidity of the medium appealed to me for capturing the idea of "Liberty through the storm". Freedom and liberty are proud American deals that were fought for through dark and chaotic years of revolution. They are ideals that are onstantly threatened and tested both domestically and abroad. They are ideals that have the choice etween standing proud and strong or crumbling to dust beneath the storms of oppression. The choice of rater color seemed natural for this work. Water color takes careful planning and preparation of the work urface, deliberate choice of pigment to achieve distinct variation but not lose it to muddy mistakes. The rt of water color is a dance between hues and shades to obtain the perfect rendering, just like the battle or and foundation of the American freedom and liberty that makes art in this fashion possible.
