Project Description
Due to ongoing funding by the Redwood City Improvement Association (RCIA) and a sizable grant from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), we are thrilled to announce the commission of Miami based Cuban artist Carlos Estévez’s first exhibition in the Bay Area titled The Flying Dreams. The installation is dedicated to the City of Redwood and the spirit and the energy of The San Francisco Bay Area. This artwork is inspired by the history of people searching for dreams in the west from Gold Rush days to the current allure of the tech industry. This Da Vinci-like giant kite levitates in the Art Kiosk in an ascending posture in a hopeful prophetic vision relating to a world healing from a pandemic, social unrest, and issues of privilege & equity.
The Flying Dreams it is a complex juxtaposition of symbols. Exotic handmade papers from around the world coupled with the artist’s detailed drawings & collages transform the artwork into an ethereal flying creature merging from the beauty and ingenuity of a multi-eyed butterfly to a crude flying machine. Each piece of paper becomes its own universe and in unison a metaphor for community. Hand sculpted bamboo forms the skeletal like shape including its articulating propellers and tail ribbons. Both are activated by an electric fan throughout the day and night. With night lighting the sculpture takes on a new energy after dark.
An equally important element of the overall exhibition experience is the kite making workshops lead by Carlos Estévez’s and local workshop leaders from the Redwood City Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department and the Redwood City Public Library. These workshops are part of the robust summer programs for children, seniors and all. The inspiration for each budding artist is to create and decorate a kite in the form of a self-portrait related to their appearance, identity, and dreams. When these kites return over the Art Kiosk and Courthouse Square, as a community based event, we hope to gain a sense of our lost community and also illustrate how individuality is valued in Redwood City and the Bay Area.