Art gets political with the Divided State of America
The Divided State of America is a collection of huge spray paintings by renowned artist Chor Boogie, all with representations of the issues we’re facing in modern politics. The exhibition was shown throughout the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, NC, with all events hosted by entrepreneurs.
They also hosted a symposium yesterday afternoon during the convention, gathering prominent minds in different fields and asking them fundamental questions about why America is so polarized right now ,and how we can resolve all these huge differences before the election.
This collection will also feature at a later series of public events around the country in preparation for the presidential election in November.
For more info check out their Facebook page here.
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They’re powerful images for sure, almost too violent – although I suppose it could be argued that the current state of things warrants all that harshness.
I spent a good part of yesterday catching up on all the major speeches from both conventions, and the differences in the rhetoric were absolutely ridiculous. It was like they were speaking two different languages.
Like with climate change: Mitt Romney made a sarcastic face 16 seconds too long while everyone in the room cracked up at the “sea level rising” – and Obama treats that same issue with the seriousness and respect of our children’s futures.
The differences are too big now. The gulf is so wide that understanding and compromise now seem so impossible, because hard-heartedness and violence has filled up that space.And these spray paintings by Chor Boogie certainly have that intense quality to them. Almost like propaganda for a war. It’s them versus us – the powerful few against the less powerful many.
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| PAIN AT THE PUMP One side advocates the use of nuclear power and the expansion of oil drilling. The other for the construction of windmills and solar panels. And yet, both solutions are not enough – waning resources are insufficient to support America’s continued consumption, and the economy is suppressed by Wall Street, continuing wars, and our unsustainable growth. The same gas that fuels American productivity forms the noose that may one day hang us. Can America pledge allegiance to finding sustainable solution? |
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| ANNUIT COEPTIS On every dollar bill, the Great Seal of the United States seals our fate with Annuit Coeptis, Latin for “He approves of the undertakings.” Since the Citizens United decision, centers of power – not the individual – approve of the undertakings of American politicians over the heads of working citizens. Atlas-like Americans have been rendered silent by this influence in a society intended to be of the people, by the people, for the people. How do we restore the voice of the people as the political authority in the United States? |
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| THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS For a nation built on the idea that all men are created equal, prejudice divides us at the polls and on the streets. Gone are of Lincoln’s log cabins and the fifty years since we sent man into space, and yet our youth are still targeted by “the man” and his manmade means of oppression. The Pursuit of Happiness remains in fierce competition with the deadly forces of injustice, prejudice, and inequality. How can all Americans be truly endowed with the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness? |
