Sketchbook

click on the image to see a larger version
Elegy to the American Republic (tile #12)
laser print, acrylic paint & charcoal on paper mounted on archival mat board,   6″ x 9.25″
This work is signed and dated on the backside.

I have added 4 new tiles to Elegy to the American Republic.
View more tiles…

Elegy contains 200 images of American war dead. Clicking on a thumbnail image allowed a larger version to be viewed. With each viewing the image would degrade, gradually becoming almost completely white and disappearing into the page. These degraded images have now become the source for a series of mixed media paintings that raise awareness of the real cost of the U.S. occupation.

View the documented installation of Elegy to the American Republic

What happens to memory when the images are gone?
How does the act of devouring alter our perception?
What happens when we realize that someone else has already looked?
What sort of truths are expressed if you can change the image?

View a larger image.