‘Wings of Earth’ Installation in Glendale Features Artists Vivien Adamian and Natalia Sookias

“Wings of Earth,” a temporary art installation, has transformed Glendale’s Adams Square Mini Park Gas Station into a cultural “community sacred space” for reflection on land and loss. Vivien Adamian and Natalia Sookias created a series of hanging objects inspired by decorative ceramics from ancient Armenian churches, and vessels whose naturalistic contours and folds recall peaks and valleys from lands lost, both literal and metaphorical. Drawing from ancestral and contemporary stories of hope and grief, the artists wish to offer viewers a space of reflection and awe.

The reflection space, occupied by ceramic eggs, wings, aghamans (Armenian salt jars), and other evocative clay objects, creates a dialogue about how we process loss and conceive hope in diasporic communities. Though Armenian culture is represented in the design of this installation, the artists’ aim is for the art to transcend cultural boundaries and remind the many communities in Glendale what it means to extend a hand during difficult times.

This temporary art installation, on view from March 26 to  May 31, is sponsored by the Glendale Arts and Culture Commission through funding from the Urban Art Program, with support from Glendale Library, Arts & Culture, Glendale Community Services and Parks, and the Adams Hill Neighborhood Association.