Works and Days

Miranda Herrick commemorated every day in 2007 with a small pen and ink drawing. This series was a dedicated, determined effort to connect with an audience through a shared experience of time. She created each drawing during such a short time frame (a day) that the viewer might remember what they were doing on that day, especially if that day is significant to them, such as a birthday or anniversary. While the artist was drawing, what were you doing? How did you commemorate each day lived and make it memorable?The 365 small drawings catalogued here are from Herrick's large series "Works and Days." The group of bright, colorful patterns was created in 2007, the year the artist turned 30, and served to commemorate her three decade milestone as well as the birthdays of most citizens of earth.Although a few of the designs create organically shaped images, most are more structured geometric patterns. These drawings began with penciled grid lines and grew out with repetitive pen-and-ink line work done freehand. The process is meditative in nature. A sense of calm is achieved through the repetitive actions. The title of the series is taken from a poem by the Greek poet Hesiod which mentions the necessity and virtue of effort.