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January 17, 2006
American University Museum
January 17 - March 12
American University Museum
Katzen Arts Center
Washington, DC
America's Grave debuts at the American University Museum, Katzen Arts Center, as part of the faculty show From the Studio.
America’s Grave
Presented by the US Department of Art & Technology
Randall Packer, in collaboration with John Anderson
America’s Grave is a symbolic burial site for the nation. The work is part of the ongoing project A Season in Hell, chronicling post-apocalyptic conditions in America. The “body” of the nation lies in medial state, in which the media image represents the last remains of the corporeal body of America. Six video monitors display imagery and sound from broadcast television, corresponding to six circles of Hell from Dante’s Inferno: (1) Sowers of Discord (Fox news commentator Bill O’Reilly); (2) Violent Against Their Neighbors (War in Iraq and Islamic Terrorism); (3) Traffickers in Holiness (Tele-evangelists); (4) Profiteers of the People (Hurricane Katrina); (5) Falsifiers of Commodification (TV advertising); (6) Traitors Against Their Own (Bush Administration). All that is left of America is the image - reality as we know it has been left behind - far beyond the suspension of disbelief. Viewers may leave flowers and photos at the graveside as they pay their final respects to the nation. They may also take rubbings of the gravestone.
Posted by Randall at January 17, 2006 11:24 AM