Art, Occupy Boston movement, etc.

I've been taking drawing class in Somerville and J.P. to keep in practice and it's been quite an experience. I'm all about drawing feet and hands since they're the hardest and there's always more to learn.  So far on the scrolls I'm looking at the ongoing execution of black men and how quickly that cause can be forgotten in this media driven age. I can't forget Troy Davis. I'm also looking at torture and its impact on the world.The chess set is for the game it seems so many people take the issues as. Notice the Mitt Romney action figure.

These illustrations on the scroll are with a circus theme which the American political system continues to be. Yet certain traditions like jailing and executing black men continues to this day.

 I remember hearing as a kid, " The Revolution will not be televised". yet in this Postmodern day and age it HAS to be televised and posted on facebook before it's over. I never thought a revolution would include photo ops with the police and feel like a tourist attraction.

 

I went to the Occupy Boston protest at South station to get a feel for the movement and some artistic inspiration. Of course there was a sense of disappointment about what was there. What I got was that there are these people loitering on private property and living there in tents. I liked the sense of unity , free food and performances that were going on all day. It was essentially a street fair with no permits. I can't help but wonder how the police would have responded if several homeless families did this or if the protesters were people of color.  I did like the Gandhi statue that was decorated. The look was something to behold and well sculpted.








It's sad that Obama's image has been now  used as this by the left, and it definitely shows that " change" has happened in 3 years.

I contributed several paintings to a mural about how I want the world to change and I created several paintings I felt people need to be reminded of in terms of the tragedies in parts of Africa. After watching the updated videos on the Invisible Children at work it was still on my mind. Luckily Obama sent 100 trooops to Uganda to catch the leader of the group that has been causing much of the war.

Of course I couldn't help but notice that there were people with diverse agendas that were in attendance.

I'm always loving the communists. Just because you can't help but admire their persistence. So wacky.  No matter what rally I've attended , conservative or liberal, they'll be there. I'm all about revolution , especially when 1% owns a majority of the country's wealth. But I'm often skeptical of teaming up with  weekend revolutionaries.  There should be an alliance with the  working class members of the Tea Party and continue with breaking gender, religious, sexual orientation stereotypes and forms of oppression. I was thinking about the Beatles song Revolution while I was there and one line stood out in particular: ".... You'd better free your mind instead".

 
Beyond a lack of a coherent agenda ( They need to go after Bank of America first) I can't help but wonder if the revolution will end when Boston's mercury drops a few degrees below.

I can't help but get annoyed by the open weed smoking and recruitment when it comes to liberal causes. Maybe it's because growing up in the 80's under Reagan and seeing the Just Say No, anti drug prosecutions of men of color that I wonder where the hippies were after acid dropping and weed smoking at Woodstock happened.  They seemed very silent when it came to how many of us were being destroyed by the epidemic.  

I'm going to post my illustrations as I'm working through the process. I've also started another companion box  instillation to go with Uncle Ben Makes a Break For It. My main project is the scrolls but I'm getting more into assemblage.