"Point of View" by Dustin Harewood | Obelisk 450

"Point of View" by Dustin Harewood | Obelisk 450

Email: compassionstaugustine@gmail.com

Website: http://compassionstaugustine.org/

 37 Lovett Street, St. Augustine, FL, 32084

Harewood’s art practice over the last decade has explored themes of multiculturalism and the consequences of colonialism and industrialization. Harewood draws inspiration from his familial lineage and the 21st-century world of desire for immediacy in all aspects of life and seeks to find nuance within vanishing moments in order to capture a narrative between histories.

While beautifully fascinating and simultaneously destructive, our contemporary culture is one that is wasteful yet transformative. A throw-away culture that takes garbage and up-cycles it into valuable objects which transcend time, religion, fine art, and commerce. Harewood’s material explorations do just that, often using discarded packages, mass-produced manufactured single-use plastics, and recycled fibers. Harewood embellishes, collages, adorns, and recontextualizes these objects into substantive works of art. Works that consider what makes beauty and how to transform the past, present, and future through complicated associations in history and narrative.

www.dustinharewood.com


ARTIST STATEMENT

The narrative I chose to explore was that of “point of view.” On the four sides of my structure, I illustrated four people/groups of people who would have had very different perspectives on the colonization of Florida.

The Obelisk started for me with a traditional portrait of King Philip II. During his reign, Spain reached the height of its influence and power. The voyages to Florida reflect his ambition. It was not he however who would have been risking his life by voyaging to faraway lands. It is the Conquistadors located on the opposite side of the Obelisk who were the ones venturing into the unknown.

On the third side, I have illustrated a pair of Timucua Indians who are in the process of witnessing the arrival of Europeans. On the fourth side, I have illustrated early African Americans who have run away from bondage in desperate search of refuge in more compassionate places such as the Spanish settled St. Augustine.

Materials

Originally located in the courtyard of the St. Photios Greek Orthodox National Shrine, now on display in the courtyard of St. Cyprian’s Episcopal Church.

Lured by their strong desire for freedom of religion and economic opportunity, about 400 Greeks agreed to come to the New World as indentured servants in the 1700s. Then under the command of the Turks, many Greeks were enslaved or persecuted in their homeland. So when Dr. Andrew Turnbull offered them the opportunity to come to Florida, the first and largest group of Greeks to come to America signed on. When the ship set sail, they were part of an expedition that also included immigrants from the Island of Menorca and Italy.

But what began as a pilgrimage of hope and freedom across the Atlantic soon turned into a deadly disaster in New Smyrna. The harshness of living in mosquito-infested swampland and the scarcity of food in the over-populated colony caused hundreds of immigrants’ deaths.

After serving for a decade in New Smyrna rather than the promised seven years, they were finally liberated and began a trek to St. Augustine. Upon arriving, they settled the first significant Greek colony in North America. Their lives improved significantly here, but the Greeks still felt isolated because they missed their heritage and faith. In response, they began to gather in the Avero House to pray, even though they lacked an official orthodox priest to guide their worship.

The descendants of these courageous souls converted the Avero House into the St. Photios Greek Orthodox National Shrine. This shrine is thought to be the oldest existing edifice where orthodox Christians gathered for prayer in the United States. In 1982 it was dedicated to the first colony of Greek people who came in 1768 and also as a pilgrimage site for Greeks all over the country. Inside the shrine, exhibits display the life of the early Greek settlers and the development of the Greek Orthodox Church in America.

The nearby St. Photios Chapel is open to visitors. The ornate chapel is constructed and adorned in Byzantine style with frescoes of the apostles and saints, special exhibits, artifacts, photographs, and documents. One of its most prominent inscriptions compassionately proclaims, “Come, whoever is thirsty, accept the water of life as a gift, whoever wants it,” from Revelations 22:17, in honor of those who voyaged over the water, thirsty for freedom and a better life.

The museum chronicles the Greeks’ struggles and accomplishments. Special exhibits contain artifacts, photographs, and historical documents. In the annual Greek Landing Day Celebration every June, religious, cultural, and historical events are held to honor the ancestors who braved the journey that opened the door of freedom for all those who came after them. The story of how they came to America is called, “Our Plymouth Rock.”

Medium type: Paint

Date created: September 4, 2015

Dimensions: 8' 6" tall