The iconic colors and patterns of the American flag symbolize the nature of what it means to be an American, and on Wednesday, they were a canvas upon which students could share what they believe about America.
American Expressions, a project started by sculptor Ira Hill, gives students the opportunity to share their thoughts on the nation they call home.
Hill, a Birmingham, Alabama, native, started the project in 2016 prior to the presidential election cycle and toured his piece around the country.
“In these times, we got to come together instead of come apart, and as an artist, I believe in the power of art for positive transformation,” Hill said.
Hill was born in Indiana and continues with his career as a sculptor when not touring his project. Hill recently finished a residency with Sloss Furnace in Birmingham.
“We isolate ourselves from our fellow man, from our fellow woman in our culture, and somehow, we just constantly think we’re better when we could be helping versus criticizing,” he added.
American Expressions spent a year at the Jule Collins Smith Art Museum before hitting Haley Concourse on Oct. 3 alongside Hey Day.
Some students wrote with words of admiration for the piece, and others continued through their passions or criticisms about America.
One student, Elvis, senior in psychology, chose not to share her name or home country but shared her thoughts about America on the rolling project.
“It’s just, this country saved my life, and I love it because there is a lot of reasons,” Elvis said. “I feel lots of love in this society.”
Hill said his project allows people to practice face to face interactions.
“I can have love, and I can respect you for being a human on the baseline,” Hill said.
Another senior in psychology, Tyra Wilson, commented on love in America after also taking time to share her thoughts.
“The political climate that we live in right now is not one that is concerned with love because love necessitates the protection of people, the protection of humanity,” Wilson said.
When the country is divided between red and blue, conservative or liberal, Hill is striving to bring people together under tolerance and compassion, he said.
“This is a cure for the animosity of anonymity, that we’re all displaying our worst behavior because we have the veilof the computer,” Hill said.
Hill has to base his project’s location on where he can find parking for the larger-than-life flag.
Each new city and each new stop brings new coats of paint to the project to give human beings a chance to share their opinions.
“The origins of this process was to promote freedom and tolerance,” Hill said. “And when I was in Louisville, I got to do a radio interview and met a gal that talked to me and said, ‘If you’re going to do all this, you need to promote compassion because tolerance is just the skin of hate, and this is what we’re seeing. When we lose tolerance, we shed blood. You need to have a bridge between people’s realities and that’s what compassion is.’”
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