The Lighthouse

The Lighthouse
encaustic mixed media
20×16 inches
available at artstream

The Function of Art/1
Diego had never seen the sea. His father, Santiago Kovadloff, took him to discover it.
They went south.
The ocean lay beyond high sand dunes, waiting.
When the child and his father finally reached the dunes after much walking, the ocean exploded before their eyes.
And so immense was the sea and its sparkle that the child was struck dumb by the beauty of it.
And when he finally managed to speak, trembling, stuttering, he asked his father:
“Help me to see!”

-Eduardo Galeano, The Book of Embraces

I just learned that one of my favorite writers passed away this week. I came upon Eduardo Galeano’s work when I was 19 or so and his writings changed so much for me- the way I read history and thought about memory. His writing always had a way of kicking me in the gut. I just read an article on him where he was quoted as saying that the purpose of the writer is to help us to see.

Forgotten Dreams
Helena dreamed she had left her forgotten dreams on an island.
Claribel Alegria gathered Helena’s dreams together, tied them up with a ribbon, and put them away for safekeeping. But her children discovered the hiding place and wanted to try on Helena’s dreams. Claribel told them very crossly:
“Don’t even touch them”
Then she called Helena on the phone and asked her:
“What should I do with your dreams?”

-Eduardo Galeano, The Book of Embraces