If you are traveling by foot, you could very easily and unknowingly walk right past this portrait by Cuban American artist Jorge Rodrguez-Gerada. The massive face is not meant to be seen from the ground, but rather, he has created an incredibly powerful piece of art meant to be viewed from overhead.
Together with 80 volunteers from the Netherlands, Rodrguez-Gerada constructed this sand portrait in Amsterdam, which spans the length of two football fields. The project was commissioned by feminist organization Mama Cash and was launched on International Human Rights Day earlier in December. Vogelvrije Women–Defend women who defend human rights! features the face of an anonymous Meso-American woman who stands up for the rights of woman.
The artist says, “Working at very large scales becomes a personal challenge but it also allows me to bring attention to important social issues, the size of the piece is intrinsic to the value of its message. Creativity is always applied in order to define an intervention made only with local materials, with no environmental impact, that work in harmony with the location.”
