A recent piece that I made, titled “The Industrial Complex,” is featured in the Valdosta State University Art Faculty Exhibition - in the newly renovated Gallery within the Fine Arts Building.

I think about a lot of different things, someone called me an “idea person,” I’m not an avid fan of the E News channel I don’t like most news shows anymore, however I do frequent the History, Discovery and Science Channel(s) and I listen to a great deal of NPR, (I enjoy Fresh Air & Science Friday immensely).

What does this have to do with this piece? Well, I felt compelled to make this work, one could say that it is political, and it certainly is, however I hope that it functions on several levels, from basic aesthetic or visual interest, to communicating a certain degree of content that may be interpreted by the viewer. I enjoyed hearing what people had to say at the opening, which was packed (and a great success).

This piece has been in my mind for some time now, it is made of several materials that include: Terra Cotta clay, Slip Cast Porcelain, Stucto-Lite and Motor Oil. One common debate is which direction are the items moving? Bullets in, cups out, or vice versa...I prefer the ambiguity, as it could go both ways, or perhaps the object are meant to be static, not move at all, frozen. The piece is intended to be relatively sterile, absent of identity, quiet, and almost “beautiful.”  It is iconographic, similar to that of clip art, obvious in what it represents, yet there are subtle hints to art history, architecture, gothic cathedrals, religion. The bullets - made of porcelain - are lined up in formation, expendable, figurative, silent, yet we all know what their destiny will be. The cups are made of porcelain, not styrofoam as you might think, referencing the aristocratic past of the material itself now trapped in the guise of a disposable item, filled with spent motor oil. The title references the very well known farewell address by Dwight Eisenhower.

Check out some comments by Marty Williams about the piece. Also, special thanks to Chris Parker, a firearms instructor at Moody AFB, who supplied the 50 caliber BMG round for my casting. He informed me that it was fired and the bullet recovered thousands of yards down range. He does a good Arnold Schwarzenegger impression as well...

My friend John Guzlowski has been expressing some very poignant ideas about politics, the war, and what he and others have been feeling lately, on his site. I’ve added my comments occasionally, feel free to check out his thoughts, he is a very insightful person and writes with passion.

The VSU Art Faculty exhibition runs September 17 - October 6, 2007.