Empired State
by
Stephanie Anne Johnson
Materials: glass chess pieces and boards, plastic (base) and light
Date: 2004
Size: 14 x 14 x 21"
The forms of hierarchy and oppression in this postmodern era are becoming ever more ubiquitous and sophisticated. For a privileged few, the metaphor of chess as a miniature version of the gamesmanship of life is an apt visual representation of their goals. The rest of the world suffers daily indignities, dehumanization and death through systems of exclusion, corporate and individual greed and wars.
This piece, the first in a series, is a call for the small and seemingly powerless to examine, organize and resist these destructive trends, while simultaneously working to move our country and the world to a state of economic balance, international cooperation, harmony, and inexhaustible joy. Achè!
