A new art project is challenging what we think of as obscene. It’s a colossal, very technically impressive 43ft marionette statue of Donald Trump with everything on display, and it’s called “Crooked and Obscene.” It’s not the body itself that’s necessarily indecent, mind—it’s the person the body belongs to.
You can find the artwork on Interstate 15 just outside Las Vegas, and it’s the most eye-grabbing thing in a vast, endless sea of them. It’s also not flattering, at all, which is probably why conservative commentators have screamed themselves into red-faced fury over it. Seriously: these guys are PISSED.
Ian Miles Cheong, one of the many self-proclaimed defenders of free speech out there, has declared he wants to see those behind the statue imprisoned. On X, he said, “when Trump becomes president he should jail everyone who was a part of this effigy’s creation.” Oh, and he threw in an ableist slur into the bargain because of course he did.
Elsewhere, the unamusing Amuse wrote that the statue was “designed to incite violence against and on behalf of the former president.” Other notable comments from people too irrelevant to name include “The left is now the party of war” and “absolutely disrespectful stunt by the liberal mob.” Aren’t these the same people who used to complain that the left was too easily triggered?
Coming from a non-American, it’s amusing how all these infuriated Republicans played right into the hands of the anonymous artists. The art was designed to provoke, and it absolutely succeeded, therefore it’s a good piece of art. But of course, it’s also incredibly unsettling to see right-wingers calling for artists to be jailed over exercising their right to freedom of expression. Talk about “obscene.”
Published: Oct 1, 2024 11:54 am