San Antonio Songbirds © Dixie Friend Gay 2015, 8′ x 39’, hand-formed and custom glazed ceramics and glass pieces, Northeast Senior Center, San Antonio TX
The mural depicts three songbirds native to San Antonio, the Black Capped Vireo, the Indigo Bunting and the Painted Bunting, on a larger than life scale with a surrounding “quilted” pattern of mosaics.
Historical dates are stamped into handmade tile that creates branches.
As one steps back from the mural, the dates become the texture of the branches.
Although some of the dates mark tragic events, the memories recalled are not so much the event, but where the person was, what they were doing.
The dates become personal markers with different associations for each person, sparking conversation and discussion.