Every Word WE UTTER
The concept of this proposed women’s monument was inspired by a letter from Elizabeth Cady Stanton to Lucretia Mott in which she wrote about the power of words and deeds: “Every word we utter, every act we perform, waft unto innumerable circles, beyond.” I wanted to capture the collective energy from all women who have made this happen, as well as acknowledge that we still need to keep moving as we strive for equality.
Ode to the Suffragists
For Susan, Elizabeth,
Sojourner, Harriet,
Alice, Ida, and countless
strong, eloquent,
and dedicated others
they were fiercer than
their own bones
wilder than any bird slipping the
bars of cage
more insistent than ocean tides,
coming ashore again and again
and they marched and sang
canny as water,
freezing and melting to
crack granite
sturdy as trees, rising on the
branches
of each others shoulders
strategic as generals,
marshaling forces,
mapping the way
and they marched and spoke
their urgent words becoming
a deep thrum
insurgent, outspoken, wise,
undaunted
patient and impatient
differing and agreeing
fermenting, fomenting, witty,
tenacious
and because failure was
impossible
they marched deeper into freedom
dissolving the mineral ‘no’
Veronica Patterson
Coalescent Cascade
When a water droplet impacts a body of water it pushes waves outward and rebounds upward as a smaller droplet. This droplet, called the daughter droplet – gains height – then falls back to the water in what is called a coalescent cascade. This describes the height, breadth, and lasting impact of the Suffragists’ work.
Dedicated to their history
Concepts for her sculptures are embedded in DeDecker’s research, and every sculptural gesture is a deliberate connection to the in depth digging she does to understand her subject. With every new challenge, DeDecker’s studio is covered in stacks of photos; copies of articles, journals, poems, and interviews; piles of clothing and physical artifacts. She searches for words and patterns to help her interpret the soul of her subject in a visual form. DeDecker is intrigued by more than capturing a likeness. She sculpts a piece until the research takes three-dimensional form and the viewer feels what her subjects must have felt.
Spearheading Hr473
June 29, 2018
Every Word We Utter is not chosen for Central Park.
