Postscript II: International Day of Peace Art Show

Here's some more work from the International Day of Peace exhibit: What Does Peace Look Like? held at the San Geronimo Valley Community Center (For more on this event see posts for Sept. 18, 20 and 23).

The above piece is by Richard Lang and Judith Selby Lang,  titled The True Cost of Plastic

Richard and Judith explain:

For the International Day of Peace we turned our attention to a somber bit of plastic jetsam that is washing up onto Kehoe Beach in the Point Reyes National Seashore. Through the years we have amassed quite a collection of toy soldiers plus Cowboys & Indians, space-men, and pirates that chronicle the history of world conflicts. To date, we have well over 200 from Japan, Korea, China, and from gutters from our San Francisco Bay Area neighborhood.  The miniature helmets and weapons make it clear that war is our subtext and whether it is the internal disagreements of life’s decision-making or real war, these little figures are a way for the psyche to play; to imagine the impact of combat.

Wracked by a long life at sea, some of the faces are gnarled, chewed on, abraded by the sand. When we looked into their tiny faces we were amazed by their expressions. Each soldier is a poignant reminder of the ravages of war and the extremes to which nations will go to preserve dominion over the petrochemical world. Is plastic still cheap when the cost of war is added to the calculation?

For more on the work of Richard and Judith Selby Lang you can check out:

http://www.beachplastic.com/

and this video:

https://vimeo.com/18718794