REBECA
MÉNDEZ

While Angelenos spend their lives in fortunate climes, the arctic tern— the world champion in long-distance migration of the animal kingdom— is occupied with its annual commute from the Arctic to the Antarctic and back again, flying over a 50,000 miles, always heading towards the 24-hour light of the polar summer, making it the creature that lives the most daylight of all living beings. Titled CircumSolar, Migration 4, this is my second mosaic mural at the Crenshaw metro station, and depicts the view, as seen from my camera lens, of panning the skies in search of the arctic tern, catching a glimpse of the bird’s swift wing, backlit by the arctic summer sunrays. CircumSolar, Migration 4 is an ode to the resilience, grace and determination of the more than five billion birds that, in pursuit of sustenance, migrate across our planet every spring and autumn, guided by the sun. It is also an apt metaphor for the daily commuters of Metro, many of them immigrants themselves.

CircumSolar, Migration 4, 2016–20. 16 × 14.5 feet. Smalti Mosaic. Fabricated by Mosaicos Venecianos de México in Cuernavaca. To be installed Fall 2020.