“Balloon Man” is comprised of several components that began with the creation of the sculpture some years ago. As time went by, the joyous image of the "balloons" began to flow within my vision and was accompanied by visualizing children's happy faces looking at the balloons.
It began with the “Balloon Man” sculpture (soldered copper, dimensions: 100” x 24” x 12”), created over 40 years ago.
In 2008 I wrote and recorded the poem and combined all of these elements to express the human spirit.
“The Hidden Miracle of the Creative Spirit – Holocaust and Genocide” is conceived in response to the ongoing Pandomaniac Acts of Degradation and Death that human beings continue to inflict on their fellow human beings. There are few parts of the world where the madness has not found its fertile ground.
An attempt is made to showcase the works of children and adults who, when faced with Life/Death threatening circumstance, continue to create works of art. These works are a testament to the richness and perseverance of their inner life, and I choose to call their response to the cruelty of the world “The Hidden Miracle Of The Creative Spirit”.This video stems from a desire to keep alive the memory of children who wrote the poems and drew the pictures at the Terezin concentration camp, as well as the memory of the adults, and in some cases their families, who risked their own lives in order to create their last testament.
Years back, I saw the Terezin exhibit in New York and bought Gerald Green’s book “The Artists of Terezin”. I initially laid the book away because it would not allow my conscience rest. To remain silent any longer, however, would be an act of cowardice, and so, instead, I have approached a group of parents and asked them to participate by giving me permission to film their children (ages 8 -13) and to encourage them to become familiar with the story of Terezin and the fate of the children who lived and were murdered there. In simple words, I explained to them what took place and gave them each several poems, asking them to read them, memorize them, and then speak them in front of the camera. In this way, the children and their parents who had never heard of Terezin became an ongoing link, memory to memory, that will continue into the future.
Also featured in this video mural are three African-American children and one adult, standing as witness for those mothers and children of Darfur who have met with such hardship and death.