Painting: Toucan And Ghosts By Christine Sloan Stoddard

Toucan and Ghosts

By Christine Sloan Stoddard

Editor's Note: This piece is currently on view at Brooklyn Public Library-Flatbush Branch in New York City.

Toucan and Ghosts. 2019, 22"x30", watercolor.

A Note From the Artist:
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I just finished my M.F.A., so naturally I'm tired of writing artist statements. Artist statements are largely unnecessary, except in the case of truly every-detail-counts conceptual projects. Usually they just function as awkward captions, much like this one. The artist, beckoned by a curator or editor, reluctantly writes an artist statement to help sell a piece or fill a page or help some non-profit win a grant. Even for writer-artists like myself, we often prefer not to write artist statements for our visual work. If we had wanted to express ourselves with words, we would've done so. Instead of an artist statement, you'd be reading a poem or a short story or even a personal essay versus some pseudo-academic art school word vomit. On that note, all I wish to say regarding Toucan and Ghosts is that I've painted this watercolor to acknowledge the many who died during (or as a result of) the civil war in El Salvador. May the rest be up to your own interpretation.

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The original painting and prints may be purchased here.