WE, THE PEOPLE

Mike Morgan, 2010

 

Mixed media bas-relief sculpture: wood, styrofoam, clay, steel, plastic, paper, plaster, paint and shredded money

 

Size: 31.5" x 67.5" x 9"

Artist's statement:

 

"We, The People" is a mixed media assemblage made from wood, styrofoam, clay, steel, plastic, paper, plaster, paint, and shredded money measuring 31.5" x 67.5" x 9". Based on the U.S. one dollar bill, it depicts America: past, present, and future.

 

The PAST has recognizable photos of our wars, our politicians, our achievements and our failures. These include photos of Union officers and the Shawnee Chief Tecumseh, Walter Cronkite and the Kennedys, Willie Mays and Julia Child. There are presidents and immigrants, crowds cheering for Babe Ruth and for Martin Luther King. These were "We the People."

 

The PRESENT shows the present state of affairs. We are plastic people amid shredded U.S. currency, and the Federal Reserve is concerned only with Wall Street. In the middle, two giant political heads yell at each other while wrapping themselves in The Constitution and The Bill of Rights. Meanwhile, corporate pigs are all over Washington, D.C., lobbying for more handouts. The dollar is under corporate control. The debt of the United States and All Our Debts, Public and Private are in the red and increasing with no end in sight. George Washington is looking at us in dismay. Does anyone really understand how much a trillion is?

 

The FUTURE is represented by the two circular saw blades with crying babies affixed to them. They will be “We the People”. They represent the future generations who will prosper or suffer because of what we do now. Justice John Paul Stevens’ comment on the Supreme Court’s ruling about corporations transcends time.

$5,697.00*