MARGARET MEEHAN
Richmond, Virginia, USA
Margaret Meehan with Benevolent Blackness, during her residency at the Bemis Center, Omaha, Nebraska
Margaret Meehan, Gentle Bird: FUCK You, 2019.
If recent months have taught me anything, it’s that history is not behind us. We repeat, relive, and recreate stories forgotten by generations past and those yet to come. This is what my work is about and to live it in real time is humbling. COVID-19 coincided with NCECA [National Council on Education in the Ceramic Arts—the US annual national conference on ceramics] coming to Richmond. Needless to say, it never did. I watched as everything shut down and the commerce and energy the conference was supposed to create evaporated, hinting at the impending gravity of the situation.
On May 25, George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis spotlighted another global pandemic: white supremacy and its connection to racism and power. Living in Richmond, VA—the former “Heart of the Confederacy” —and just minutes from Monument Avenue, I have a front row seat on change, fueled by the desire to write one’s own story, claim space, and find joy. Recently I moved my studio to my home due to a shift in income. And while I initially felt sorry for myself (having tied my identity to it and my ability to produce), I now know it was a gift that prepared me to understand what is truly important.
The world is on fire but I am privileged to be able to still make my work when people are unemployed, being evicted and losing loved ones. I’m learning that limitations push you to create new possibilities and I am grateful to listen and learn from both humans and birds.
Margaret Meehan, Through a Window. Over a Wall, 2018. Installation overview. Vintage military parachute, thread, bricks, vintage photos of women and birds dating from 1800-1980s. Dimensions variable.
Margaret Meehan, Through a Window. Over a Wall, 2018, installation detail.
During the Lockdown, Margaret Meehan has been using ornithology as a metaphor. Making porcelain, terra cotta and mixed media hybrid sculptures and drawings of women and birds.
Margaret Meehan, The Early Worm Gets The Bird (in-progress), 2020. Terracotta, underglaze, glaze and rope. 9” H x 10” W x 22” L
Margaret Meehan, Sad Songs Say So Much. 2020. Terracotta, underglaze, glaze and collage. 15 H x 17 W x 22 L inches
Margaret Meehan, Budgie and Cardinal (in-progress). 2020. Terracotta, underglaze, glaze. 12 H x 7 W x 6 L inches each
Margaret Meehan, Daily Drawing 4.20.20 (in-progress). 2020. Paper, gouache, and collage. 11” H x 7.5” L
Margaret Meehan, After Laughter, Comes Tears, 2020. Terracotta, underglaze, glaze, wig and astro-turf. 18” H x 20” W x 24” L
Margaret Meehan, Greta Love, 2020. Terra cotta, porcelain, underglaze, glaze, wool and collage. 14” H x 10” W x 7” L