The exhibit is titled Multiple Interpretations: Contemporary Prints in Portfolio at the New York Public Library and calls for artists “to tell a story, to take a stand on political and social concerns, to consider formal issues, and to explore the creative process.”
That is exactly what artists Nora Ligorano and Marshall Reese, accomplish in their portfolio “Line Up” which features images of members of Bush’s cabinet portrayed in mug shots. The work is more than simply images of Bush’s cronies in mug shot format. Each photo includes a date that corresponds to a date ‘when the “suspects’ made ‘incriminatory’ statements about Iraq” and is accompanied by a DVD where “these and other officials are heard making their assertions; the pop of a flashbulb is then followed by the mug shot of the speaker, growing progressively larger until it more than fills the screen. The screen goes dark, and a metallic clunk, presumably the sound of a prison door slamming shut, ends each sequence.”
Portfolio Details:
Line Up
Portfolio of eight digital prints with colophon and DVD
Brooklyn: Madness of Art Editions, 2006
Now we wait to see if, in this case, life will imitate art.
The show runs through January 27
Exhibit page at NYPL
Press release
Article on the exhibition in Newsday