VIGIL FOR DEMOCRACY
Installation artist Sarah Bush invites the public to ‘light a candle’ on Election Day eve
RARELY HAS THIS COUNTRY found itself in such a politically charged environment. As Election Day is closing in, drowning us in a sea of rhetoric, the constitutionally guaranteed right to vote has become the lighthouse whose beacon is guiding citizens through murky waters. It is the voice of our democracy speaking. We’ve remained informed, planned our voting strategy and perhaps even volunteered. Yet, even that which should be without controversy has had its challenges.
Voting has been underway in New Mexico for several weeks and, though we’ve trusted that the process has been secure, the news has been full of stories from other states of voter suppression and intimidation.
“People are scared, anxious and upset,” said mixed-media and installation artist Sarah Bush, a self-proclaimed “news junkie.” “I felt it’s important to give consideration to those feelings but express them in an empowering way.” “Light a Candle for Democracy” is Bush’s answer: a means for a wide audience to join together and celebrate the best of the American spirit.
This weekend join Bush and your neighbors when “Light a Candle for Democracy” takes place at Revolt Gallery, 222 Paseo del Pueblo Norte, on Saturday (Oct. 31), Sunday (Nov. 1) and
Monday (Nov. 2.) The event is both an in-person installation and a virtual art experience.
The in-person installation, taking place all three days from 3 to 7 p.m., will be a “shrine” to democracy and is situated in Revolt’s outdoor street-facing kiosk. “Visitors will be able to approach the space one at a time; take a private moment to set an intention; and light one of the many votives that will be available,” Bush explained.
And in accordance with all state COVID guidelines for participant safety, “Revolt also has a big yard with lots of spreadout seating where it will be easy to maintain social distancing as you wait your turn to enter.”
Perhaps your intention will honor the various aspects of the democratic process such as equality, the rule of law and one person, one vote, she continued. Or maybe you simply wish to be part of a movement that has been gaining international attention and is generating an affirmative energetic wave. Through the project’s website, “I’ve already had people sign up from across
the United States and in countries as far away as Indonesia,” Bush noted. “The virtual experience will happen later in the day on Monday,” Bush said. “At 6 p.m. I will be livestreaming from the shrine on both Facebook and YouTube, and leading us all in a collective candle lighting. We will light those candles for everything we hold dear about the democratic process, civility and respect for all.”
“Light a Candle for Democracy” promises to fulfill the human need for ritual – important not just for our spiritual beliefs, but also for our secular connections with family, friends and the community at large.
“Lighting a flame — whether candles inside or bonfires outside — becomes a mindful moment, an opportunity to pause,” said psychologist Kari Leibowitz in her studies of the dynamics of liturgy. For Bush, “A lot of the negative dialogue we’re hearing has us reacting to the conversation, which puts people on the defensive rather than the offensive. I think we need to be proactive and change the conversation. We should exercise the self-discipline to focus not on the ‘other side’ but on the truth in our own terms: to understand, recognize and articulate our power. “Lighting these candles together on the eve of a pivotal moment in history is one way we can step out of isolation, uplift each other and face one of the most divisive elections in our history from a position of grace and strength.” This is not Bush’s first foray into adopting art as a political statement. In 2018 the artist created a “Vote” poster
featuring her work entitled “Old Glory,” and offered 10 free prints to anyone who was willing to hang them in public places.
“Friends, then friends of friends, then friends of friends of friends all wanted copies of the poster. I could barely keep up with printing to meet the demand,” she said, laughing.
She was swamped with pictures from across the country of the poster hanging on highways and rural back roads, public buildings and private offices, horse stables and ocean beaches. Her YouTube video, “Get out the vote: A story about an artist, a vote poster and people just like you,” is a compilation of images from New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston and points in between. This year, Bush has been selling signed copies of that poster with 100 percent of
Lighting a candle for democracy.
the proceeds donated to Fair Fight, the national voting rights organization based in Georgia.
Bush and her husband, Jonathan Soons, relocated to Taos in 2019. “During my 20s I had lived briefly in New Mexico so when we decided to move from the East, we came out here to explore. After stopping in Taos we agreed it was a place we could live.” The former personal and home accessories designer settled easily into the art scene here. This summer her “Wheel of Fortune” – a collaboration with artist Tawni Shuler, and engineered by Soons – was installed in the window of Reneux Consignment as one of 60 out of 300 works selected to be part of The Paseo Project 2020. And earlier this year Bush’s exhibition of mixed media on metal, “I Am the Fire,” was featured at the Taos Community Auditorium’s Encore Gallery to an appreciative audience.
“As an artist, my currency is my imagination, which can be good or bad,” she smiled. “But I’m not going to waste it.” That’s evident: as much as art courses through her veins, so does community activism. Channeling the spirit of vice presidential candidate, Kamala Harris, who recently remarked, “Our democracy will be as strong as the American people’s willingness to fight for it,” Sarah Bush implores us to engage our collective muscle.
“Join me in supporting our democratic rights. Please vote.”
Visit lightacandlefordemocracy.com for more information on this weekend’s events and to sign up for the virtual art experience scheduled for Election Day eve.
For more information on the artist, visit sarahbushartworks.com, or call (201) 563-4317 for an appointment to visit her studio.