Monumental Work

For years, when I looked up from the desk in my law office, I would see a large poster photograph of The Pont Neuf Wrapped by Christo and Jeanne-Claude. It showed the historic Paris bridge covered with golden fabric, as people and buses traveled across it just before sunset. This was a community art project of monumental proportions.

Art for Lawyers

Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s work is the ultimate artwork for lawyers. Their huge installations required contracts, land use permits, public hearings, expert testimony, and complex negotiation. The projects took years to complete, involved layers of administrative process, and required extensive documentation. All things familiar to lawyers.

As I initiate my first community art project, I am thinking about Christo and Jeanne-Claude, and in particular, their Reichstag Wrapped in Berlin. In that project, they covered the historic seat of German democracy with silvery fabric, highlighting its essence, drawing attention to its importance. Their project was executed after German reunification and before the building was re-established as the seat of government.

Art for Democracy

The project I have begun employs fabric and another symbol of democracy: the state legislature. The scale is smaller and the fabric more domestic. In fact, that’s part of the point of this craftivist endeavor.

I am gathering community members to knit a 3-foot tall state capitol out of yarn. The finished sculpture will be adorned with gloved hands that appear to be knitting the building. The hands symbolize the people represented by our legislators and government officials.

I am holding several knitting circles in Vermont during 2020 to Knit Democracy Together. (Find the schedule on the project website.) As people work with their hands, they will learn about electoral reforms being used across the U.S. that connect officeholders with the electorate. I will share my knowledge of public campaign financing measures from Seattle to Maine. These innovative programs are reducing the influence of elite donors and incentivizing candidates to interact with their constituents.

These gatherings are ideal for discussions of electoral reform. They recall the knitting and sewing circles of the abolitionist and revolutionary periods of our history. They are assemblies where people share conversation while working on a common endeavor. People will engage on multiple levels through kinetic, visual, and conversational interaction.

By sharing my vision of electoral reform grounded on my legal experience, I aim to take steps to restore confidence and improve our democracy. It’s a monumental task, but no more so than covering a real capitol building with silver fabric.