Something in the Wind
1975Textile, acrylic and felt-tip pen on nylon
“I made a flag for each person in my life that I have good feelings for, or who I feel connected to in some way. It was a celebration for them, and a means of identifying and locating myself in the world by naming the persons who surround me.”
(Excerpt from one of Ree's sketchbooks)
The Relation-ship, as Ree titled this work, was a public project consisting of a collection of more than one hundred colourful nylon flags, flying from the masts and rigging of a ship. Each flag was dedicated to a friend or family member of hers.
This is a photo from Ree's studio, where she had collected many different examples of flags.
Ree's sketchbooks contain several examples of historical flags and emblems.
Ree made many different sketches for Something in the Wind. In the sketch shown here you can see written, among other things: 'A tomato plant for Italo.’ Italo Scanga was her former teacher and a close friend, well-known for the Italian dinners for artist friends that he and his wife hosted at their home. The tomato plant as a symbol for his name on the eventual flag was an inside joke that was certainly fitting.
Following the 1974 exhibition on the ship in New York, Ree installed Something in the Wind in various different ways. Shown here are a preparatory sketches for a wall installation, an installation in a friend's house and garden in upstate New York; and another wall installation where it is combined with other works by Ree.
Ree also dedicated a flag to the now-famous performance artist Laurie Anderson. Laurie was a good acquaintance of Ree, they met in an informal group (The Anarchitecture Group, of which Gordon Matta-Clark, among others, were members) to discuss developments in architecture.