"The idea came to me while trying to imitate a flag by hand. My fingers fluttering in the air resembled a bird, and that’s what we want with flags: To be free through emblematic, highly visible clarification of who, what, and where we want to be. But nothing is as simple as it seems, and people are marked by ambiguity. The interpretation of messages, like that of gestures, depends on context, which is often as fluttery as we are.
I photographed my own hands – my most important tool as a sculptor, the extension of my thinking, the shapers of my sculptural language. A self-portrait at dizzying heights. My hands form the gesture of a bird in shadow play. Some interpret it as an eagle (a bird of prey), while others see it more as a dove (a ‘peace bird’). Both cast the same formal shadow in the wind that blows them, but with contrasting meanings. What they have in common is that both eventually leave the nest to unfold – to become fledged.
I imagine my hands flying high on the flag and how large the shadow would be that this gesture usually tries to create. In Bad Gastein, where many (quirky) birds also circle, this imaginary shadow is cast not on ceilings but in the open air on mountains and hotels. The relaxation during the ‘sommer.frische’ liberates, gives wings. At the same time, the bird of prey also circles its territory. This simultaneity can be reinterpreted in any context and place. Nothing is simple; everything has its sunny and shady sides, each being subjective.
In calm winds, the hands merely caress the air and the flagpole. The sign of the bird is not recognizable, but one can sense that the hands are trying to convey something, sometimes waving vigorously, then gently greeting, in their airy, seemingly free element. The wind will help to be free, more independent – fledged."
(Miriam Jonas)
The artwork by Miriam Jonas is available as a signed and numbered flag edition in the format 80 x 123 cm. Limited edition of 60 copies. Orders can be placed at: www.mip.at/en/shop/raising-flags-editions.