Mahmoud Darwish

‘Heart Between Two Doors’ 

Digital Print

2014

I created my piece from the Darwish poem, A Noun Sentence. Is this a play on nonsense? I was especially moved by the questions about identity, purpose and the existential nature of the poem. I also was moved by the line, “my heart exceeding my need…” These concerns are especially poignant in these trying times being conflicted about their response in terms of helping them come to peace or supplying arms. Seems as is Darwish may be suggesting that the answer lies in the present tense. Living in the moment, trying to be your best self at every given moment.

North America Art: Idenitiy, Place, Memory

‘Raíces de Carambanos’

2015

This piece is about the simultaneous states of freezing & thawing, closing down and being open to growth.    The icicles symbolize the human tendency to freeze, to be overcome by fear, while the roots symbolize the human ability to persevere and allow growth to occur.  Both states exist side by side and cannot exist in isolation. The added element of the red roots with the drops of blood reference the pain and beauty that can be realized when we accept this more than dualistic nature of life.

Art and Resistance

‘Chouette’

2016

After being invited to COP21 in Paris and witnessing first hand the fierce commitment of
artists and activists, I stumbled upon this costume form the Paris Opera House and found it
symbolically illustrative of the tenacity required for social change.

Soul Drift

‘Octopus Out of Time’

2016

Octopuses are the canaries of the sea. They are indicators of a healthy ocean ecosystem. They are also the chameleons of the sea; They change color, becoming masters of disguise. And they have three hearts and light blue blood. Since they have no skeleton, they can squeeze through very small spaces. Here, my octopus is stuck inside an hour glass to illustrate that time is running out for this sensitive and intelligent creature. An hour glass is an enclosed vessel, similar to our planet, that is an instrument of time. Grains of sand fall through a small opening bit by bit to measure and visualize time running out. An hour glass is made up of a triangle and an inverted triangle, which represent masculine and feminine forces being joined together. Not only do all men and women need to come together to protect our environment: the land, oceans and the creatures who inhabit our planet, but the masculine and feminine forces within each of us need to be united as well.

Rebecca DiDomenico
2016

Globalocation

‘Where do we come from?’

2016

In the journey of where we come from, I imagine elements from the ocean colliding with otherworldly universes, hanging by a delicate thread, where fate can be altered in the whim of a moment.  All of this is connected to the earth, to our roots, to the veins in our body, so that all imaginings of where we have come from and where we are going are intertwined, layer upon layer of earthly, otherworldly, underwater realms.

This piece is a digital image of a drawing that I created about the creative process. It relates to many themes of displacement. The creative act can sometimes be about destruction together with creation. In order to break down preconceived ideas, break through walls, you have to be committed to that shadow side in yourself first. Then out in the world, the breaking down of walls is the natural progression.

This piece is about the simultaneous states of freezing & thawing, closing down and being open to growth. The icicles symbolize the human tendency to freeze, to be overcome by fear, while the roots symbolize the human ability to persevere and allow growth to occur. Both states exist side by side and cannot exist in isolation. The added element of the red roots with the drops of blood reference the pain and beauty that can be realized when we accept this more than dualistic nature of life.

-Rebecca DiDomenico

“Field of Internal Vision” represents the unwavering path of an artist devoted to cultivating the vision necessary for growth and transformation on a personal level. Viktor Frankl wrote, “What is to give light must endure burning.” Seeing and being seen are integral parts of the human plight. When we open our eyes to our own personal shadow and our deepest wounds, we pave the way for others to heal through self-awareness and examination.

“Inside Out Cure” expresses the perilous state of our planet, while at the same time illuminating the process of an actively healing organism. Passing through various states of disrepair is a necessary part of evolution to purge and recreate. It follows that the earth, as a living organism, has analogous transformational stages. As inhabitants of a fragile and changing ecosystem, we cannot afford to ignore the warning flags of dramatic climate shifts and whole system degradation. As artists and activists, our work is to bear witness to the complete picture, illuminate both the devastation and celebrate the ever-present joy that exists.

I think of Rebecca DiDomenico as an artistic pied piper. There is a luring, magical quality in everything she does–whether it is in her delicate drawings that lead you into their mystical spaces, or in the invitation to her cave-like installations feathering thousands of butterfly wings or to join her parade of umbrella carriers on a rainy march through Boulder. She galvanizes others, leads them to dream along with her and enter her world- a place that is a little more colorful, and a little more ideal than the one we normally live in. Swoon Art House is just such a place.
Kim Dickey

“My Dearest Rebecca:
Once again you have created your magic when we need your vision most — This time your Constellatory and Planisphere. Just as the world, this country, seems to be imploding from the inside, you offer us the long view of the Cosmos. Your vision reminds me of the “Atlas de Photography de Solaires, The Atlas of Solar Photographs by Jules Janseen in France — (1824 – 1907) — daily images gleaned from the layers of solar gas that makes the sun visible. I can only imagine what your own stellar exhibit is allowing to see star by star by star which you are.
I still hold the dream of collaboration.
With you in spirit, missing you, with love, Terry”
— ttwillet@gmail.com

This environment literally sparkles. But its intensity pulls the impact back from the edge of decorative into the realm of wondering both “How did she do this? And Why haven’t I seen this before?”
-Mary Voelz Chandler, Rocky Mt News Art & Architecture Critic

Rebecca DiDomenico….has created a magical installation—a room and adjoining alcove lined with more than 10,000 mica rectangles. Each of the tiny, translucent panels overlays a dizzying array of black-and-white images ranging from past and present figures, often nude and sometimes erotic, to playing cards, centuries-old alchemical diagrams and architectural drawings. Rather than the somewhat detached quality of the traditional art-viewing experience, this installation plunges the viewer into an all-encompassing, almost overpowering sea of imagery, creating a powerful sensory experience.
-Kyle MacMillan, Denver Post Fine Arts Critic

Rebecca DiDomenico…created a labyrinthine creation made up of more than 10,000 rectangles of mica. Within the mica are black-and-white images of seemingly random items, such as snakes, body parts, art and underworld creatures, completely covering the primary exhibition room from floor to ceiling as well as a tunnel in the entranceway. She thought of these images that flash before your eyes, like a near death experience. The overwhelming number of images draws the eye in particular directions that will be different between patrons, creating a unique one-of-a-kind experience.
-Vince Darcangelo, Boulder Weekly