Iraq War Art Exhibit at UWC

I Hate Olives, by Chad Allen

"It's Bush under glass."

The middle-aged woman pointed to fifty miniature portraits of President George W. Bush, each one a computer-enhanced photograph cropped from eyes to mouth. She shook her head when I asked for her name.

"This makes me nervous. I want to learn as much as I can, and I keep an open mind. But I worry what my neighbors might think if they knew I came here to see this show."

Pressure. Anonymity. Death. Fear. United World College art instructor Colin Lanham described the emotions the "We Protest" traveling Iraq War art show might pull from your gut in a short presentation to the UWC assembly last Friday.

"This is art. It's not right or wrong. I've had students come up to me and tell me that certain pieces don't tell the whole story - that important facts are omitted or exaggerated. But that's not the point of the exhibit. The pieces were created to make you think."

And think you do, as you let your eyes walk the walls of the Kluge Auditorium atrium. The mixed-media pieces offer a harsh contrast from the carefully manicured soccer lawn outside the show. "Shifty Fifty," the aforementioned display of fifty Bush grins, are slightly shaded and arranged to give the viewer the subconscious impression of a swastika. A hand-crafted bowl of rough pressed cardboard filled with seeds and beans counts the number of Iraqi civilians killed compared to American soldiers whose lives have been lost in the Iraq war. A short section of wall sprouts mummified pig ears and plastic cockroaches, connected to each other with pieces of media wire. The symbolism is direct, in-your-face, decisive. There is no room for moderation here; Bush is clearly labeled a killer, a hater of women, of blacks, even a killer of innocent puppies in a series of black-on-white prints.

"We Protest" originated at the Hearst Center for the Arts in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Fifty pieces were collected for an exhibition titled "First Fifty 2006:  Works by Cedar Valley Artists."  Thirty artists submitted protest pieces related to the war in Iraq, and these have become the traveling exhibit "We Protest."

Lanham invited the public to view the free show, and to open a dialogue with himself and others in the community about what these images mean.

"The show is non-juried; every piece submitted was accepted, and there is a wide-range of abilities, styles, and quality. It's really meant to challenge your mind, and to make you think about what is happening with the government, the war, and the media. Do you think Bush is really against babies and puppies? I'm open to any comments."

The woman who refused to give her name touched a folded accordion paper covered with the names of dead American soldiers in tiny script. She made the sign of the cross. The sun melted into the green fields and hit the glass covering a neon-blue and red sketch titled "Waron Moron." The light hit Bush's painted eyes. The woman wept.

The show includes works in painting, drawing, photography, paper, mixed media, video, audio, sculpture, and collage, with themes ranging from citizen's rights to the war as depicted in the media. The exhibit runs until October 3, 2007. Members of the public are welcome to view the show during the hours of 9 a.m. - 5p.m.; visitors are required to check in at the UWC Welcome Center, where College staff will be able to direct them to parking and the Kluge Auditorium.

Waron Moron by Aaron Wilson and Tim Dooley, screen print

Comments

[Lloyd]

making you think is great,... but making WHAT you think a foregone conclusion is no better than the idiots in the white house.

Interesting pix and text B.

[Stever]

I love anything that makes me think...

Of course, if this were Nazi Germany, the artists would be "de-loused".

Freedom... it's to die for!

[Wandering Willow]

The woman's comment is worrisome - or at least it should be. Her thoughts about wanting to think freely but being afraid of her neighbors knowing about her seeing the exhibit sound frighteningly like what people were quoted as saying during the slow rise of the Nazi regime.

Lets hope our citizens can be a little more awake and proactive than they were. It would be nice if somebody eventually learned something from history. If we would.

[Soos]

The power of art: to move you.

The nameless woman wept.

Even though she worried more about what others might think of her, something happened.

A project with a different look at war brought a community together: http://www.auntiepupule.com/blog/soos.php?id=862

[Birdie]

Thanks for reading my little review (of sorts) of the art show. I found it to be a compelling and thoughtful exhibit. It certainly made me evaluate what my thoughts on the current administration and war efforts are.

[Birdie]

And shhhhhh! Don't tell my students I'm sneaking internet while they work!

[Lloyd]

is your email working yet?????

:)

Hope all is well.

[suede]

great review and great piece on the top of the page - by my dear pal montague. can you add credit to this so he and his other work can be found by those interested?
possibility lives in conversation.
keep talking and take action.
either we live for fear and lose our love or we live for love and lose our fear.
choose love.

[Case Wagenvoord]

Birdie,

I'm glad I stumbled across your new site. The exhibit sounds as moving as it is through provoking. Are there any plans to send it out to the east coast?

As soon as I have the time, I'll link my blog to your site.