I'm very interested in the
call for proposals for the
USS Olympia now available through Philadelphia Sculptors. I've thought about the
Olympia for a long time, but never really as a site for art work. But it's been an important place for me for a long time, so I am trying to think of how to work with it.
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| The Olympia |
A few weeks ago, I visited with my friend the painter who makes things,
H. John Thompson. This seems made for him - especially after his
last show at Napoleon. We looked around the Seaport Museum and were very helpfully guided through the ship by an employee who shared a lot of good info.
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| John at the place where the remains of the Unknown Soldier of WWI were placed en route to Arlington Cemetery. |
I had been to the
Olympia earlier this summer, with Carmina and the boys. We stood on the spot where Commodore Dewey began the Battle of Manilla - the spot where you could trace a line through American international relations from May 1, 1898 and the end of the Spanish colonial period in the Philippines to the 1960s and the immigration policies that made it possible for the Ocampos to come to this country.
On this most recent trip, I learned about change to the international signal flag system and was able to get a lead on the way the flags would have been used in 1989. Through the library at Temple, I got a hold of the
International Code of Signals for the Use of All Nations - 1894 edition. My work with signal flags made this a natural course to follow...
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| Using old work for placement, to see how it looks on the rails |
The signal book describes how three-letter combinations are used to communicate certain frequently used messages...much like three letter shortcuts are used in
text messages (LOL, etc.).
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| A version using some simpler banners |
Here are a few of the short versions...I am also thinking of making enamel pins of them...
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| Are you on fire? |
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| We shall have calm. |
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| Will you give me passage? |
