KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Election Day is Nov. 7 and, whether it’s this election or the next one, one Kansas City artist hopes to remind people of the importance of their right to vote.
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Stan Herd, an Earthworks artist, discovered the secret to getting voters to "Speak Now."
His art is among countless tributes to the budding romance between Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, dubbed by some "Travlor." romance. Located in Kansas City’s Stockyards District, he dedicated artwork to the new couple in hopes they’ll see it.
“Everybody’s been fascinated by this gathering together of a pop star and a great football player,” Herd said.
But there’s a lot more than just romance to the "Travlor" puzzle.
Chiefs Kingdom, the Eras tour, and the friendship bracelet that started it all are obvious pieces. Herd is capitalizing on the corners of this puzzle through his art, too.
“When you really dig deeper into what she’s (Taylor) about, especially her bent in the last couple of years to get into voting and bringing young people into voting, it’s just such a critical thing right now,” Herd said.
His art includes a reminder to register to vote and a link to vote.org.
Swift has been known to encourage young people to register to vote for years. On National Voter Registration Day in September 2023, she posted a reminder on her Instagram story with a link to register via vote.org. According to the organization, they received over 35,000 new registrations.
“How do you bring people into being a responsible person in democracy? And it’s just not easy for anybody, but especially for young people who are just going, what’s really the purpose?” Herd said.
He hopes his art will have the same effect on voters as Swift does.
“Young people actually right now have the chance to turn this election cycle around,” he said. “If you support women’s rights, if you support the environment, if you support old people, all the things Taylor Swift supports.”
He said it’s a lot harder to trust you’ll like the way the puzzle turns out these days.
“We’ve earned the right to be cynical about stuff because a lot of bad stuff’s going on out there,” he said.
But even the best puzzles start at the corners.
“We just do what we can do, get up and do what you can do on your corner of the block,” he said.
