Petaluma-Based Non-Profit to Feature “Spellbound,” a 15-Foot Winged Heart Trapped Inside a 12-Foot Revolving Cage as the Artistic Centerpiece of the Festival
Petaluma-based nonprofit Life On Earth Art and the Mill Valley Music Festival announced this week that the inaugural festival’s visual art program will feature several pieces from former longtime Mill Valley activist artist Tracy Ferron, who is bringing three acclaimed, large-scale pieces to the event.
Ferron, who founded Life On Earth Art in 2018 as a platform to marry her interests in art, healing and activism, collaborates with social justice activists, art therapists, public institutions, artists, and non-profit organizations to build community, amplify healing, and foster global conversations and change. This will be the first time Ferron has shown her work in Mill Valley. The three pieces that Life On Earth Art will showcase at MVMF are:
- SPELLBOUND: Spellbound’s 12-ft spherical steel cage houses a 15-foot Winged Heart, which together cast mysteriously beautiful shadows as they slowly revolve. Festival goers will be encouraged to slip between the bars of the cage and experience the mesmerizing power of standing inside the cage, dwarfed by the “Big Mama” Winged Heart.
- THE ACTIVIST HEART: The Activist Heart was enlisted in October 2020 for the Women’s March Sacramento rally to bring awareness to historic women of color who championed voting rights. This Winged Heart, which has the Universal Declaration of Human Rights emblazoned on its wings, features seven activists in its lightboxes and invites engagement and interaction with the writing of wishes which are posted through a vintage mail slot in the back of the heart.
- BEACON OF HOPE: The Beacon of Hope will welcome the thousands of music fans to the festival as they walk through the entrance gates beneath its nine-foot wingspan.
“I’m excited to bring these pieces to Mill Valley and the inaugural Music Festival,” Ferron said. “Besides the opportunity to share the healing energy of these works with so many friends, we are on the precipice of launching several major initiatives and installations, and we believe this event will be a tremendous catalyst for Life On Earth Art’s future efforts to foster global conversation and create change. Plus, what an amazing lineup!”
In addition, Life On Earth Art will bring 15-foot wooden wings from Mill Valley artist Tim Ryan, which will likely prove to be a favorite “Instagrammable” feature for festival goers of all ages.
“As we built the plans for our event, we knew it was important to feature artworks that had a similarly powerful impact as the amazing line-up of world-class musicians that will grace our stage,” said Mill Valley Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Jim Welte says. “We know Tracy’s works will create long-lasting memories and experiences for all who engage with them.”
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THE MILL VALLEY MUSIC FESTIVAL is a new, one-day, all-ages music festival presented by the city’s Chamber of Commerce, takes place May 7 at Friends Field in Mill Valley. The lineup for the event includes headliner Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals, along with Lettuce, Liz Cooper & the Stampede, Latin Grammy Award-winning Venezuelan disco-funk trio Los Amigos Invisibles; and the Bay Area’s La Doña, a Latin-Alternative music project considered to be one of the most sought-after new acts from the Golden State. MORE INFO & BUY TICKETS.
ABOUT LIFE ON EARTH ART: Founded in 2018 by Tracy Ferron, Life On Earth Art is a Petaluma-based non-profit organization. Leveraging community collaboration, custom curricula, and a collective curiosity, Life On Earth Art creates handmade, large scale, interactive art installations that inspire connection, engender unity, and cultivate individual transformation to foster global conversation and change. Life On Earth Art is currently partnering with Napa State Hospital to transform a hall into an evocative space of healing and creativity through the creation and installation of nearly 1,000 large paper-mache hearts. The project, called Unbound, is led by 65 therapists for 1,200 patients, and is supported by hundreds of community members. For more information or to donate, please go to, https://www.lifeonearthart.com/.
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