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mongst students, faculty, community
s
e Town hall style forum...
it to hear from the artizt/ |
“This is part of a series of attacks on
Catholic celibacy and the papac$^
”U/
don't- \A,
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ve a redeeming
"Academic freedom
quality?"
rity’s interest
onsidered.”
is a sacred trust, but
not limitless"
W in plance.”
[otti anà rospo
[r to comma'
. When art is
ropagânda,
priate in an
J”
I
r they thought of "Two popes
how they responded...
“I thought itwas kind
of wei rdlooking.”
Ryan Rudge,
^£mergency^iedical ■
Technician
Other works from the "Hey 1
cracked my Knuckles" series.
The following was written by an English instructor while visiting an art show with her class
This Piece Removed from the Exhibit Due to Complaints Regarding
the Misuse of Fruit Imagery (Sign found above a blank, white space)
The bolts remain,
and the white wall,
and the absence of misused fruit.
The watermelon whose insides
were scooped was seedless to be
gin with.
Not fair for us to view the green
cave
that was all
the artist left.
Pharmacy
And the cantaloupe has gone roll
<| “1 wouldn’t consider it art.”
Jeff Meuser/C 1
»
PHOTOS BY SAtENAiDÉL^CRUC
Gene Flores is a south Texan artist, art instructor at El Paso's Univer
sity of Texes and creator of the "Hey I cracked my Knuckles" series
displayed in the Pauling Gallery Feb. 13-17. The series contained the
piece "Two popes boinking" responds to the controversy in a statement
sent via e-mail to David Anderson, art instructor.
“Hey I cracked my knuckles” is a series based on the blind “faith”
that many of us follow in daily routine. Cracking one’s knuckles
means I have had enough of following a path and following all the
rules that had been placed by others upon me. The faith that I
refer to is in no sense a biblical nor religious one, but rather one in
which we place pur emotions, trust and feelings into another’s
control and hope that they do the best for us. We follow whatever
they may want, blindly at times and take it for granted that all
they have chosen for us are the right choices. I am in the midst of
following my own path, one I have set for myself. Unfortunately it
has placed others at arms length, and others have become defen
sive that I have chosen to speak for myself.
Here is where the true essence of my work lies. I speak for
myself riot others. I do not wish to place my thoughts nor ideas
upon others, for by doing so, I will become all that I am rebelling
against. I do my works knowing that some people will not appre
ciate what I am portraying, but that is out of my control. If people
become offended I cannot, and will not allow myself to bend my
ways to please them because doing so I will inevitably offend oth
ers. It is a lose-lose situation.
“Popes Boinking” and “The Pope is Telling Them Off for Boinking
Little Boys” is not an attack on the Catholic Church nor on any
other religious beliefs. It is a play on words. Once again the word
“pope” is something that we all have an association with, one that
has been placed and imbedded into our thoughts by outside forces.
By using that term, I am aware that people will associate it with
die religious icon that it represents, but it goes far beyond that.
The term pope refers to a spiritual head of any various non-Chris-
tian religions, or peoples of knowledge, i.e., schoolmasters, profes
sors. I am using that term of the pope to portray instances in my
"The pope is telling them off for
. life where I have felt betrayed by these people. “Popes Boinking”
boinking little boys"
shows the constant conflict between my new path and the path
that was chosen for me. It is a personal struggle, I feel that I am
.screwing myself over by being so bullheaded!!
“The Pope is Telling Them Off for Boinking Litde Boys” tells
the story of a person in authority using people that are dependent
(i.e. children) on others to place himself as a person to be wor
shipped. The spider reference to the icon represents his spinning
his web of lies and deceit to capture his “prey”. The hats worn by
these people do resemble papal headdress but also refer to the hats
worn by many during the Spanish Inquisition. Crosses, not cruci
fixes, are a Native American symbol, they also represent the handle
of daggers, and lastly the crossroads that I am headed in. Deci
sions that we all have to make in our daily lives. Decisions we
make, not ones that are made for us, is what life is all about. Free
"Virgin of Marmusetta1
dom to make our own choices.
By Diana Averill
way of expressing 'Bims^elÓ^
Fawnia LeDuc, ? ■
Artist's Statement...
ing
somewhere in the sky,
but the viewer shouldn’t
worry. It’s happier as the fifth
moon of Jupiter.
Only the apple, discolored,
bruised,
definitely misused^ is to be
pitied. It hides its starry, black be
ginnings
from those who want it only for
its beautiful gold skin.
Someone disliked how the grapes
hung,
.
how they invited mouths
to cover their green nipples.
Before the removal of the fruit
there was no reason for guilt.
After the misuse of removal,
the fruit imagined its roots,
regenerated in other paintings
and hung itself,
not in despair,
but, yes, in secret.
All over the city, fruit crept
into other paintings.
Raspberry juice dripped from a
watercolor brush.
Figs, peeled down to their inner
chambers,
shrugged off one acrylic attempt
to cover them with their own
leaves.
Arms blossomed. Artists marveled
at their
originality as the fruit reasserted
its origins.
Sculptures became fruit orchards,
producing cherries
even the most cranky of complain-
ers
would not hesitate to keep,
though perhaps disguised in pies.