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fear boxes/artist statement

updated sat 28 dec 02

 

John Jensen on thu 26 dec 02


I've been mulling this over for the last few days...trying to put myself
in other's place and understand what happened. This seems like an
example of that old saw: Freedom of speech doesn't extend to shouting
"Fire" in a crowded theater. In these days, with everyone so concerned
with terrorism, one should expect a very strong reaction. If I decided
to make such an installation, I would fully expect to be arrested,
possibly imprisoned for some long time. So I would want my artistic
intention to be important enough to warrant paying such a high price. As
far as the consequences to others is concerned, this would raise the
stakes even higher. I would have to feel an overwhelming need to express
an important artistic idea. I can't quite conceive what that might be.
In fact, this particular installation seems to me (And I only know of it
through these clayart messages) to be more of a political or social
expression than an artistic one.
I wonder if anyone knows what the student's intentions were. Was
there a little 3 x 5 card on the wall with the artist's statement?


John Jensen, Mudbug Pottery
mudbug@toadhouse.com, www.toadhouse.com