~ART WITH RELEVANCE~ ELEVATING ROADKILL’S IMPACT
- Charlie Westbrook
- Mar 31
- 4 min read
Art is a reflection of the times! As Aristotle said, “The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.” ROADKILL makes me think about this often. It is one thing to create art as emotional relief for self, but there is a certain power that is felt in art that channels that raw emotion into unapologetic symbolism that encourages a call to action!
I'm very happy to be engaging in the greater Richmond art world. I reflect on how prior to ROADKILL, I used art to make sense of my personal grief. The ‘source energy’ for the art I created was born from a desire to heal my internal wounds. By offering my paintings to others, I feel like my paintings before ROADKILL allowed me to find healing in my connections with others who resonate with my feelings on canvas. It gave me a sense of affirmation surrounding my mental health—a sense of safety surrounding the realization that my inner world can be appreciated when I express it out loud.  |
I’d like to refer to that period as BEFORE ROADKILL (BR). A period in which I had the opportunity to harness my power to channel my emotions onto canvas, gain clarity around the depth of my thoughts, and witness what happens when I connect with others. The highest power of art is to help us connect with others, and it is such a gift to let my art lead me to others who resonate with the medicine in my art.
In this AFTER ROADKILL (AR) period I find my art to be focused and aware of how to wield my skill to create meaningful art in ways that encourage expression as activism. With my most recent exhibitions, I am seeing how creating a collection of art with a central message is a powerful declaration, especially when that message contains very real concerns for our collective well being. |
MORE ABOUT MY NEXT EXHIBITION
~ FALL OF FREEDOM
As I mentioned in my last newsletter, I was asked to participate in the second Fall of Freedom Art Exhibition by a fellow artist here in Richmond. Reading Fall of Freedom’s Press Page, my identity as an artist has expanded— descriptors such as “social commentary artists”, “artist initiator” resonate deep with how I find myself showing up in the world. I can feel myself putting on the boots of my armor as I prepare another one of my pieces from ROADKILL at the event occurring on May 1. There will be a few galleries in downtown Richmond Broad Street that will be doing various events around this effort. Additionally, the Antennae Gallery on Broad St is going to have its second FoF exhibition!
I think a lot of us sit up lying awake thinking hard about the state of our world and what power we have to do anything to move us towards more peace. Fall of Freedom has gained awesome traction employing artists such as myself with the opportunity to contribute our artistic warrior energy towards making statements that push us all to unite against systems that work against our sovereignty as individuals. Your attendance and support of artists like myself is a small step with deep impact toward the future we want to see for ourselves.
While Roadkill’s focal point is animals and the roadbed, my central intention has been to call attention to our impact on the greater world. War is unkind; not just for humankind, but to wildlife and the environment. Like the ‘No Kings Protests’, this is the artist's path to make a statement about our society, and that feels important and impactful.
If you are finding it hard to find hope for the future, I feel I created my ROADKILL series as a very real reflection of what is worth fighting for, and it is my stance, that nature is worth fighting for! Wild animals and their well being are as well important as our human wellbeing. The state of their livelihoods is a reflection of our livelihoods. Their extinction is our extinction. We are all stewards of this planet by our sheer existence, and the more we can remind ourselves of this fact, the more we can align our actions and energy towards solutions regardless of their magnitude.
If anyone feels compelled to share how they resonate with any of the paintings left for sale, let me know what they make you feel inside? The purpose of their imagery is to build our capacity for empathy. Change cannot occur if we cannot acknowledge pain. Click on the photo below to send me a line.
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