Student Singers Perform at First Major Public Art Installation
May 31, 2003 — As the wind raged on Thursday close to a thousand prayer flags were installed in the front portico of Hamilton City Hall and Arts Centre.
"Prayers in the Wind" turned out to be an appropriate name for the first major public art installation in Bermuda.
The prayer flags spiral into cones while dangling from ropes sounding like sticks rubbing together, or as Bermuda National Gallery curator, David Mitchell suggests, "the whispering of numerous gods".
Artist Kendra Ezekiel who co-created the project with the gallery and the Corporation of Hamilton knew when it came to install the flags that, "it was out of my control. We had to change our initial plans for the installation. I was a bit nervous but what could we do? We had a great team."
She was joined in the hanging by her friend Christine Hind, Mr. Mitchell and two Corporation of Hamilton employees who Mr. Mitchell says, "were absolutely great. We'd never done anything like this before."
He originally asked Ms Ezekiel to submit a proposal for another exhibit over a year and a half ago. He considers her "one of the most important artists doing site specific installations. She had several pieces at the Arts Centre at Dockyard. One was a wonderful fishpot filled with a huge chunk of Styrofoam which had the illusion of a rock. I really wanted a site specific installation in the exhibit `New Art, New Genres'. But it was such a big project it was decided to do it as a separate thing later."
Ms Ezekiel wanted to expand the project to involve as many people as possible in the creation of the project. Almost a thousand people participated in some way and she had to let go control of how the project actually turned out.
When it opened for school children at noon on Friday she felt, "brilliant".
"The children love it and that's all that matters. Close to 300 schoolchildren crowded into the City Hall foyer to celebrate the opening.
"I'm very proud to share this with all the students," says Ms Ezekiel. "For I feel you are all creators with me. We need more public art and need to broaden the idea of public art. I did not show you what it would look like when I visited you in the classroom because I wanted you to be surprised. I hope you like it."
Somersfield Academy Singers participated in the opening by singing a song written by Ronald Lightbourne called, "Small Blue Planet":
"We the children love to sing the songs of peace
So that love and happiness may still increase
Though the oceans may separate our many, many lands
They can never separate our loving hands."
While waiting for the Dellwood Liturgical Dancers to arrive in their bright costumes several students recited their prayers. The first student sang a moving song in Hebrew. Another offered "Let peace prevail on earth and let there be no war forever. Amen." The audience responded to the prayers with clapping and cheering in an infectious atmosphere.
Mayor of Hamilton Lawson Mapp had his own personal feelings about the project.
"I remember when I was a boy, flying kites on Good Friday was a favourite pastime even way back then, and we used to write a little note on a piece of paper that had a small hole in it and we threaded the kite string through that hole and watched the note work its way up the kite string until it reached the top.
"The notes we wrote were little prayers or wishes and by sending the notes up the kite string we felt as if we were sending our prayers up to God. The artwork that you see here today is a very similar idea and reminds me of the good feelings I had after I sent my prayer up to heaven on my kite string."
Kites were also one of the inspirations for Ms Ezekiel who has created several kites using the traditional cross of sticks and hand-made paper, her usual medium. She says there are many influences for this project including Tibetan prayer flags which hang in the wind until they deteriorate. These prayers, however, unlike Tibetan flags, are all original and they were waxed to make them last longer which creates their own unique sound.
They provide an amazing contrast in high winds to the traffic on Church Street. When the wind stops they hang as if resting from their work of ascending to God. The odd flag stands out from the rest because of darker ink but mostly they blend into and support each other.
With the simplicity of white flags on white rope against the white of City Hall even the knots become an integral part of the artwork. In the pond on Friday, where the water plants were just replanted on Friday a single yellow flower bloomed.
Steven DeSilva, Superintendent of Parks for the Corporation of Hamilton says: "I just came back from London and every street has public art. Everybody lives their lives around public art, why aren't we doing the same thing?"
The Corporation of Hamilton and the National Gallery are committed to more public art. The prayer flag installation will remain up in front of City Hall until the end of the summer.
A wonderful way to view it is walking up Washington Lane.