Exhibition Features Pop Culture Political Paraphernalia
University Galleries presents 鈥淧olitical Sideshow 2016: From 鈥楤itch鈥 to (Big) 鈥楴uts鈥 and Beyond,鈥 an exhibition of election campaign paraphernalia and artworks examining the current presidential campaign.
The University Galleries in the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters at 澳门六合彩历史记录 will present 鈥Political Sideshow 2016: From 鈥楤itch鈥 to (Big) 鈥楴uts鈥 and Beyond,鈥 an exhibition presenting election campaign paraphernalia and contemporary artworks that examine the current presidential campaign. The works were created by Kenneth Tin-Kin Hung, Pip Brant, Jamilah Sabur, Veronica Mills, Aurora Molina and Randy Burman.
The exhibition will take place from Friday, Oct. 7 through Saturday, Dec. 3 in the Schmidt Center Public Space, in the hallway outside of the Schmidt Center Gallery, 777 Glades Road, Boca Raton campus. There will be an opening reception and a one-night-only 鈥淰ent-o-matic鈥 performance with Burman on Thursday, Oct. 13 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. The exhibition and reception are free and open to the public. Public programs will be announced.
The exhibition is the brainchild of co-curator and 澳门六合彩历史记录 professor Jane Caputi, Ph.D., from the Center for Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies; Communication & Multimedia, in conjunction with AdrienneRose Gionta, MFA, the exhibition鈥檚 designer and co-curator as well as an alumna and adjunct professor in 澳门六合彩历史记录 visual arts and art history.
鈥淧olitical Sideshow 2016鈥漺ill feature bumper stickers, posters, T-shirts, buttons, caps and other paraphernalia related to this historic and controversial election.聽 The aptly named 鈥渟ideshow鈥 portion of the exhibit will present samples of artifacts referring to multiple candidates and issues that embody the journey leading up to the electoral event.聽 These artifacts address race, class, gender, national origin, sexuality and the ways that these issues are at play in the current election. The goal of the exhibition is to further ongoing public discussion about engaged citizenship, democratic values, social justice, civil discourse, community amidst differences, and the past, present and future of what is commonly understood as a shared American dream of equality, freedom and prosperity.
The opening 鈥2008 Political Circus鈥 section harkens back to the 2008 presidential election. It features vitriolic imagery rife with racist stereotypes directed at U.S. President Barack Obama and U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama. Some items racially disparage President Obama based on his ethnic background and his supposed status as a 鈥渃loseted Muslim.鈥澛 Other pieces reference the infamous 鈥渂irther鈥 conspiracy, misogynist aspersions against Hillary Clinton, sexually objectifying and class-based slurs against Sarah Palin, and ageist insults directed at Clinton and John McCain.
One portion of the exhibit will examine the American icon of the baseball cap. Donald Trump鈥檚 signature 鈥淢ake America Great Again鈥 slogan is emblazoned on a baseball cap he often wears. Like any good slogan, this is subject to interpretation and rebuttal, including those featured on caps like 鈥淢ake America Hate Again,鈥 鈥淢ake America Mexico Again,鈥 鈥淢ake America Native Again鈥 and more.
Another section explores the sexism and misogyny directed at Clinton as the first female presidential candidate nominated by a major party.聽 Along with this material, the gallery will delve deeper into the mystique behind the 鈥渢rue owners鈥 of America and will challenge the notion of America as being representative only of those who are politically conservative, heterosexual, Christian and European-American.
Other sections of the exhibit will explore themes of classism, genital politics, notions of xenophobia, homophobia and transphobia, ageism, mythic archetypes, political correctness, and what the paraphernalia suggests about how some citizens perceive the future of the country in relation to their political affiliations.
鈥淧olitical Sideshow 2016鈥漢as received support from 澳门六合彩历史记录鈥檚 Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters through the Agora Project; School of the Arts; and Center for Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies. Additional support was provided by 澳门六合彩历史记录鈥檚 Peace, Justice and Human Rights Initiative.
University Galleries programs are supported in part by the State of Florida Division of Cultural Affairs, Florida Arts Council; the Palm Beach County Cultural Council; the R.A. Ritter Foundation; and Beatrice Cummings Mayer. The University Galleries are open Tuesday through Friday, 1 to 4 p.m. and Saturdays, 1 to 5 p.m. Class and group tours are welcome during public hours or at alternative times by appointment.聽 For more information, call 561-297-2966 or visit .
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