Check out the great documentation of the show, thanks again VVORK!
(all content below belongs to VVORK) Yea, you read correctly - 'Fotofestival' not 'Photofestival'
A photograph of The George W. Bush Monument has been included in a public exhibition curated by VVORK.com as part of the 3rd Fotofestival in Mannheim, Ludwigshafen and Heidelberg. The exhibition will be available from September 5-October 25 2009 in Mannheim, Germany. I'm also super excited because a couple of my favorite artists are also included in the show - The Bruce High Quality Foundation and Michael Elmgreen & Ingar Dragset, definitely check out their work! It's a huge honor to be included in such a prestigious exhibition, and I owe many thanks to the curators at VVORK (Aleksandra Domanović, Oliver Laric, Christoph Priglinger, Georg Schnitzer) and everyone who organized the exhibition. Thank you, Broc Text from the Fotofestival website: "Totale Erinnerung - Blog 3D, 2009 The labyrinth functions as an analogy to the world of images in the age of Flickr, YouTube, and cell-phone cameras, where there exist endless variations of an image one beside the other. The frequency of duplicates, copies, conversions, and reinterpretations demands a new way of dealing with the notion that we can orient ourselves toward images. The labyrinth is a site of confusion and at the same time memory. Similar repetitive impressions lead to a loss of orientation. The installation Totale Erinnerung (Total Recall) makes reference to the environment of the labyrinth. The Alte Meßplatz in Mannheim is characterized by a wide variety of architectural styles from the last two centuries, yet is does without any kind of memorials or monuments. Our selection of works that examine monumentality uses this site of emptiness. The comparison of similar monuments allows the viewer to recognize heterogeneity in an ostensibly homogenous series. Alongside works by contemporary artists, indiscriminate stock photography, vacation pictures from Flickr, photos from auction houses, as well as works by photographers for the photo agencies Reuters and the Associated Press will be shown. There is no clear path through the labyrinth. The visitor defines his or her own path and thus constructs a dramaturgy of the images." (Below is the image that was included in the exhibition) Hey everyone,
The George W Bush Monument was recently published in the Public Art Review, 'the world's leading journal devoted exclusively to the field of contemporary public art.' It was included in the 'U.S. Recent Projects' section of the special 20th Anniversary Issue (issue 40, spring/summer 2009) titled "Here to Stay: Public Art and Sustainability." (You can purchase an issue here) Thank you to Jack Becker and everyone at Public Art Review for including this project in their prestigous journal! The text of article reads: "While Barack Obama was getting sworn into office in January, one artist sought to instantly memorialize his predecessor. Broc Blegen, a student at the University of Minnesota, showed up at the inauguration with his "alternative to the traditional model of figurative presidential monuments": a portable, inflatable 20-foot George W. Bush Monument. Referring to the materials, Blegen said that "airbrushed vinyl and air convey a less durable political legacy" than that of presidents who get memorialized in stone. The material choice also reflects the "comedic and informal nature of President Bush, which may be one of his enduring qualities." The artist inflated the statue behind the Lincoln Memorial in the moments that the 43rd president was becoming history, so as to immediately confront people leaving the historic inauguration ceremony. Blegen was not taken aback when some "felt the need to act violently" toward his "instant monument," throwing shoes at it and even toppling it in imitation of the famous fall of the Saddam statue in Baghdad. What did surprise him was his piece remaining on view for over an hour and a half before officials ordered it taken down. Blegen says it was stranger still that, despite stringent security restrictions, he and his cohorts got to the Loncoln Memorial carrying "a small generator and two large boxes," without ever being stopped or questioned. Blegen wants to inflate the monument at several locations across the country and abroad - sites that were important parts of Bush's life and presidency. In doing so, he says, it will provide a physical context to discuss George W. Bush and his term in office. See more at www.georgebushmonument.com." In a personal tribute for former President Bush, I presented the Monument all day in the front yard of my house in Minneapolis. "President Bush monument erected in Dinkytown front yard" Stay updated on the latest Monument sightings and get tips on where the next inflations will occur! The Monument made a big splash on Inauguration day! Dear President George W. Bush, |