“Social Security” An art exhibition engages the world

The exhibition Social Security, curated by Deborah F. Lawrence in collaboration with Jayme Yahr, director of the Kirkland Arts Center, is an exhibition that addresses politics from several different directions and in many media. Right at the entrance is a confrontational glass work by Lauren Grossman called Rocker. Two big red heads face off on high poles on a base that rocks back and forth. The open mouths poised in debate or argument, it is hard to say, but since they are red, we can assume , they are vociferous! Just as political debate ought to be in this country.Back in the day that we had political debate.

Lauren Grossman Rocker 2010 glass steel iron and lead 82x36x27"

Nearby are John Feoderov’s sardonic paintings Emergence no 3 and 4. Odd shaped heads back to back, mouths open, but not communicating. They are coming out of cesspool like slime,  framed in a snake, probably a cobra who has swallowed a rabbit. His other Emergence painting is equally dark in its world vision, painful to view.  These people are anguished and barely surviving.

John Feodorov Emergence 4 2010 acrylic and canvas, 72 x 72

John Feodorov Emergence 3 2010, acrylic on canvas, 72 x 72

Another compelling work in the exhibition is Pam Keeley’s Trust Me Here is another  large head (Obama’s) with the words Trust Me sealing its mouth,  surrounded by a sea of struggling people. Keeley is referring to the election of Obama and the huge sense of betrayal that many  people  feel over his failure to act on the principles he declared during the election.

Pam Keeley Trust Me 2008 - 2010 acrylic ink and graphite on paper 44 x 36"

detail

Bill Whipple’s wooden sculptures that we can manipulate, such as .CEO, were amusing. As we turned the wheel a cog  controls the bent over bodies of two workers:  the elite are controlling their oppressions. This theme which can be traced back to Rivera’s Detroit murals of the Ford Motor Company, and other artists, is  a Marxist image, although it is little too gimmicky for such an urgent subject.

Bill Whipple CEO 2002 - 2010 fireboard, paint hardware, 32 x27x4

Charles Krafft creates porcelain weapons and security cameras, sinister and seductive, precious and threatening. See Ai Wei Wei posting for another security camera, that one in marble.

Charles Krafft Grenades handpainted slip cast earthenware

Charles Delft CCTV Camera hand painted slip cast ceramic

Kevin Wildermuth 27.7 billion dollar bill which lays out the cost of war for Washington State  is a straightforward statement that ought to be on a billboard and every Metro bus. I was disappointed it was the size of an actual dollar bill, given how strong the statement is.

Bell Wildermuth 27.7 billion dollar bill archival ink jet print, 17 x 16 x1

Of course Deborah Lawrence’s commanding collages were one of the highlights of the exhibition. Her shredded flag series on old high school maps are potent both politically and aesthetically. Speaking of scale, this is a great scale for her. Lawrence always combines astute critique with a way forward, which is a crucial dimension. Her New Preamble to the Constitution offers what we ought to be doing now, like “sign the Kyoto Treaty,” “Renounce the Drug War”  “Ban Racial Profiling” “Provide Health Care for All”

Deborah Lawrence New Preamble 2008 acrylic paper and fabric collage on recycled paper and map on recycled canvas map

Also upstairs is the subtle and beautiful work of Lou Cabeen. Cabeen seduces us with aesthetics, drawing us into “Too Late in Asking: A Litany of Loss” about Mountain Top removal. It records the names of places lost in a green canvas book. The accumulation of loss is deeply moving and underscores the catastrophe of Mountain Top Removal. Although Rainforest Action Network, Beehive Collective and other strong art groups are opposing it, it is still expanding, most recently to Eastern Wyoming, the Powder River Basin. The plan is to export the coal through coastal cities in the Northwest to China in hundreds of railroad cars.

Lou Cabeen Too Late in Asking A Litany of Loss, 2010, hand dyed, painted, and discharged cotton, artist book 16.25 x 38.5

Also included in the exhibition was The Game of Life, several board games that focused on “privilege” “immigration” and  racism in a game called “urban ghetto.” Each of these games was provocative and obviously done by artists who really thought about the issues. There were a lot of details. I wish we could have played them and they could be marketed. Although it was fun to look at them, I think the impact of actually playing each one would be much greater.

Jessie Wilson Fresh off the Boat edition

detail

Lara Kaminsky Urban Ghetto detail

Tina Russell Game of Life Privileged Edition

The glitzy privileged edition of course was the most magnetic, which is why elites in society are  so drawn to greed and more and more money.

The show demonstrates yet again how many choices and possiblitites there are for artists who wish to address social issues, humor, sarcasm, games, and just plain political statements framed with aesthetics to make them more powerful.