Simple Things- Inspired by John Mellencamp's "Pink Houses (America)"

ACEO original abstract stained glass mosaic house and landscape John Mellencamp Pink Houses (America) Inspired by John Mellencamp’s “Pink Houses (America)”, this original one of a kind ACEO features a small house surrounded by green fields with silver clouds overhead all depicted in a stained glass style motif. This ACEO is the first in my “Wet, Hot, American Sarcasm” collection which features a total of 6 cards inspired by songs people tend to think are patriotic, but aren’t. To the casual listener “Pink Houses” sounds celebratory, extolling the wonders of a great nation, but the song actually describes the contradiction between the promise of the American Dream and the reality of those cut off from it by poverty, racism, and the lack of education and opportunity. It also highlights the plight of the average American worker who struggles to keep up as they work harder with less to show for it. In my interpretation of the song, the little pink house isn’t just pink because it holds purple shadows of grief and sorrow as well as flickers of bright yellow hope along with the rosy glow that is supposed to indicate health and success. The color of the fields varies as an indication that the house has seen both times of plenty and times of hardship but is still standing, and while the clouds overhead signal a coming rain that could end up being either a blessing or a curse they do at least have that proverbial silver lining that promises resilience and continued survival. This original, one of a kind ACEO was made on acid free, archival quality, cold pressed water color paper with fine art grade acrylic paints and inks that will not fade, crack or peel. Additionally the piece is coated with a high quality professional varnish for added protection. The back of the card serves as a built in certificate of authenticity, featuring the title, artist’s signature, date of completion and naming the artist and song that inspired it. Plastic sleeve included