• Artist Statement

The Mississippi Blues Trail: The Delta Region

This series of encaustic paintings features information from the Mississippi Blues Trail historical markers in the Delta region. After capturing the text from the markers, I layer the fragmented stories into collagraphic prints and encaustic paintings. This work with the Mississippi Blues Trail markers builds on my previous work with historical markers and my general interest in how America remembers its past. I have committed myself to making a rubbing for each marker in the Delta region for this ongoing project. My focus is specifically on the state of Mississippi and the way that the state aims to construct a specific past and identity rooted in music. I am interested in how we memorialize a culture. At the same time, I seek to raise questions about the effectiveness of these markers. Is the trail too little, too late, or exactly what has been needed for some time?

Sandra Murchison