"Prison Papers" is a series of drawings on found vintage prison record forms, in which I've depicted weaponry from the world's arsenal of missiles and bombs. As I began this series in 2005, I became very intrigued with the idea of drawing within the context of the prison form's tablature, which I found I could use to present the details about these weapons. I also became enamored with the cartoon-like nomenclature for these missiles like; Walleye, Bull Pup and Shillelagh and wanted to explore the immense contradiction this presented within the context of the hideous nature of these weapons. My intent was that these drawings, through their two-sided framing device, might free the viewer from certain notions of conformity and convention and through their content will suggest to the viewer that, to the extent that our economy depends on a vast infrastructure of military investment, the notion of security can be a form of imprisonment. Kenny Cole September 2006
Drawing
Completed in: 2005
33 x 22 inches
Near or in Monroe, Me / United States
artist: Kenny Cole
The artist, Kenny Cole, writes:
Kristi chose to adopt this artwork because, in her own words, "I am a poet who uses a lot of found language in my poems. I also collect found scraps of paper, old government documents, and film reels. I like how Kenny used the found prison form to comment on the weapons and the language of the weapons. I like the idea of hanging this work in the middle of a wall that includes postcards, photos, found scraps and sketches, and a poster for the orphan film symposium which I helped with and is devoted to old, forgotten, and found films. I work as an archivist, so my typical day revolves around old congressional documents from the 70s and 80s. the language in the documents routinely makes me laugh or scares me or makes me laugh while scaring me. thank you for the chance at adopting this artwork."







