Hello to all my dear Hivers and fellow artists, today I bring you a piece that combines nationalism and nature, because I'm going to talk about the oriole; a beautiful little bird that is the national bird of my country, Venezuela.
On the one hand, I have always considered myself a great lover and admirer of nature; I like listening to birdsong and gazing at trees. I can spend hours in a park, but I can only last a few minutes in a shopping mall.
The first thing I have to tell you about the oriole is that it is a bird with very characteristic plumage: yellow on the body and black on the wings and sometimes also on the head.
They are small birds that appear cute and harmless, but in reality, they are very territorial birds that aggressively defend their nests. A peculiarity of orioles' behavior is that they don't usually build nests like other birds; rather, they take advantage of abandoned nests or attack other birds to take their nests.
The place where I chose to represent this troupial is the plains, which are one of the most iconic and well-known landscapes in my country, and whose culture has strongly influenced the entire nation.
The elements that play a role are also typical of plains culture, and I would like to explain them to you:
The hat is a quintessential element of the culture of the Venezuelan plains. It always has been, and today the llaneros (plainsmen) continue to use it, and it is a characteristic element of the people who live in that region.
Venezuela is no longer a region primarily dedicated to cattle ranching, and you could say that the llaneros are the Venezuelan cowboys. Although their culture is very different from that of North American cowboys, there is one important similarity: they tend cattle.
As hardworking people who are exposed to the sun all day, the hat becomes an important tool for them; and that is how it enters the culture as an extremely important element.
Locaturpiazos has a maraca on one of its wings, an element we are all very familiar with, as this musical instrument is present in the culture of different peoples and nations.
The culture of the Venezuelan plains is also very musical. Many young people from the plains learn to play an instrument and sing from a very young age, and the lyrics and melodies are often inspired by everyday life and the landscapes of the region.
In plains music, there are two genres that are well-known, even worldwide: Joropo and Pasaje. In both, maracas are one of the musical instruments typically used to perform these genres.
Finally, you'll notice that the turpial is wearing something similar to flip-flops; in Venezuela, we call them alpargatas, and they are the typical footwear of the people who live in the plains region. Alpargatas are like inexpensive sandals and are generally very durable and long-lasting.
Today, men and women of the plains can afford other footwear, but many continue to wear alpargatas because they like and prefer them, and because they are a cultural element with great meaning and symbolism for them.
Another reason I chose the plains and the elements of the plains is because this is one of the natural habitats to which the turpial is adapted.
I also made another image that I share with you below, in this one I made a more naturalistic representation of this bird perched on a tree.
And now I say goodbye, thanking you for visiting my blog. I'd also like to ask you to leave me a comment so I can share your thoughts on these arts.
I spent both hours using the Night Cafe app, and for those who want to use it, I'm letting you know it's free. Here's the link:
https://nightcafe.art/ru/sembrandounpais?refsrc=share