What unites us?

 . . . This is a question that has been on my mind over the last few months.  I'm part of a show going up this October with the theme 'E Pluribus Unum' (literally, 'Out of Many, One').  The exhibit is designed, in the words of curator Namon Bills:

"[The show] will be a response to the ultra-partisan nature of our country's current political climate. The concept is based on the United States' paradoxic situation as a unified whole composed of varying voices — the very embodiment of e pluribus unum: from many, one. America has always been an amalgamation of divided visions, dreams and opinions — even going back to the earliest days of our country's founding. America's success comes not from all of our citizens looking and thinking alike, but from our rich diversity of experience, background and opinion, combined with a willingness to talk to, listen to, and work with those that we disagree with. This country was founded on a willingness to set aside individual differences and compromise for the good of the whole."

It is not-so-coincedentally timed right at the elections.

In preparation I read and watched the John Adams book and miniseries as well as Naomi Wolf's 'The End of America: Letters of Warning to a Young Patriot".  Nice bookends on the American experience.

One of the things that struck me about the history of our country is the repeated emergence of 'The Other'; a common foe or challenge that unites us (the British, the French, the Loyalists, terrorism, etc).  Although I'm no historian, it seems as though when we don't have an external foe we turn on a facet of our selves (Republicans, Democrats, the Tea Party, snowboarders . . .).

I'm all for keeping each other accountable, but what happened to recognizing The Other as a concept that pushes us to our better selves, rather than an enemy to be defeated?  I think tennis is a good metaphor: neither opponent can play by themselves, and the best athletes recognize that their success depends on their competitors.  Although I'm no fan of Lance Armstrong, his battles with Jan Ullrich during the Tours of the early 2000's exemplified this spirit.  Of course politics and armed conflicts have much higher consequences than Wimbledon and the Tour de France, and sometimes the Enemy/Other must be dealt with accordingly.

I think it is the compressing of the spectrum of The Other to a single concept that is particularly dangerous.  It is becoming harder and harder to distinguish who is our metaphorical tennis opponents and who should be under surveilance or on the Predator drone short list.  

Specifically I wanted to depict artists who questioned their context and were imprisoned for it.  I also wanted to try my hand at stencils by using them to create layers of patina on metal plates (rather than the 'traditional' spray paint masking a la Banksy):

The following images are spray paint and rust tests that will inform the final plates:

Aleksander Solzhenitsyn was a Russian writer born around WWI who was sentenced to 8 years in a labor camp for his criticisms of Stalin.  

Rust patina test on mild steel sheet

spray paint test on cardboard

patina test on mild steel

Ai Weiwei is a contemporary Chinese artist who has been particularly outspoken about the human rights abuses and 'democracy' of China.  He was arrested and his studio demolished.  He is also the subject of a recent documentary Never Sorry.

spray paint test

Henry David Thoreau was an American writer in the 1800's who was arrested for refusing to pay taxes that would support slavery.

spray paint test on cardboard

Tim DeChristopher is an activist who I categorize as a 'performance artist' (although he may not) who intentionally disrupted illegal federal land lease auctions in Utah by posing as a legitimate bidder.  He is currently serving a prison sentence.

spray paint test on scrap cardboard (I like how the bar code ended up on his forehead -- unintentional Warhol-esque commentary on the commodification of protest?)