What did you do
Becky Bliss
May 6 – June 2 2019
What did you do…
it’s 3:23 in the morning
and I’m awake
because my great great grandchildren
won’t let me sleep
my great great grandchildren
ask me in dreams
what did you do while the planet was plundered?
what did you do when the earth was unraveling?
surely you did something
when the seasons started failing?
as the mammals, reptiles, birds were all dying?
did you fill the streets with protest
when democracy was stolen?
what did you do
once
you
knew?
From Hieroglyphic Stairway
by Drew Dellinger, 2017.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XW63UUthwSg
In a quiet way, the style of this work makes reference to the skill of brass rubbing, to the New York pop art sculpture ‘HOPE’ by Robert Indiana, and asks the viewer to reflect on ‘what they would do...’ in whatever circumstance they choose.
Brass rubbing was largely a British pastime for reproducing onto paper commemorative brass plaques found in churches, usually on the floor, from between the thirteenth and sixteenth centuries.
Brass plaques have been slowly worn away by the rubbing process and in many cases creating rubbings is banned.
Brass plaques, they were made to last forever because thats what they thought they had.
The Hope sculpture, Indiana said in an interview ‘I’d like to cover the world with HOPE.’
‘What would you do…’ is an extract from a poem by Drew Dellinger specifically about climate change. Ask yourself the question next time you book a flight or use a plastic bag.
