Other Criteria

Phillip Seymour Hoffman having several Jeff Koons books signed by Jeff Koons. Market fodder or pure energy? The numbers are still coming in!

Warp Zone 1

THE LONELY HERO KNOWS SECRETS

Conversation Piece

PROVOKING A REACTION

I recently finished a painting that has been in the works since September 11, 2001. Shortly after the dust had settled around ground zero, a paper target with the image of Osama Bin Laden was taped to a shattered window of an adjacent building. It had bullet holes concentrated around the head, chest and groin. For me, this picture embodied the anxiety, fear and blood-thirstiness our country felt after the attacks. These were things certainly fueled by our President in saying, "Bring 'em on." Or, "We're gonna smoke 'em out of their holes and get 'em." And the infamous, "There's an old poster out West, I recall, that says, Wanted: Dead or Alive."

OBAMA DISCHARGE

I shipped the painting to Arizona so I could leisurely gun it down in the middle of the desert. In the process of finding the right weapon, I made an off-the-cuff remark to my mother about how ridiculously difficult it was to find the right munitions. She said it was because everyone was stocking up for the revolution. I was disoriented. Sitting in a lovely suburban home in North Scottsdale, adorned by floral wallpaper and middle of the middle-class family photos, I asked, "What revolution?" She said that our out-of-control government is going to force us all into anarchy!


After unloading several hollow-point .44 caliber magnum rounds, my father helped me pack the crate in the back of his pick-up truck. He casually said, "We'll put Obama right here." I thought it was an honest slip so I laughed and said, "OSSSAMA!" He replied, "Whatever, he's not even an American citizen."

photo: Jason Santa Maria

Driving back from the desert, we belatedly arrived to our family Thanksgiving dinner. Word had spread about what we were up to. Everyone started to ask if I would bring the painting in the house. I said no. Mostly because I thought it was inappropriate to parade something around that was so visually disturbing. People kept asking, at times excitingly so, about my painting of Obama that I shot full of holes. I continually had to correct everyone about the subject matter.

EXIT WOUNDS

The morning before my flight back to New York, my mother and her husband took me out to breakfast. At this point, I still hadn't explained what sort of painting I was working on. I held this back because I was unsure about of how I would articulate its meaning. What were my implications?

She somehow knew what the image was - my brothers must have told her. I suggested it was an object that might embody the brand of patriotism that initially led our country to make some ill-advised foreign policy decisions based primarily on a collective emotional response to 9/11. They both told me that rather than appear hesitant, it was better to just strike Iraq and let the world know we weren't going to take it.

Oh, Brad! What Will Happen When They Catch You!, 2009
oil and urethane on canvas
36 x 24 inches

Dan Graham: Beyond

Madison Avenue (Facing South from 76th Street and North from The Whitney Museum of American Art)

I just returned from the Dan Graham retrospective at The Whitney Museum of American Art just returned from the Dan Graham retrospective at The Whitney Museum of American Art returned from the Dan Graham retrospective at The Whitney Museum of American Art from the Dan Graham retrospective at The Whitney Museum of American Art the Dan Graham retrospective at The Whitney Museum of American Art Dan Graham retrospective at The Whitney Museum of American Art Graham retrospective at The Whitney Museum of American Art retrospective at The Whitney Museum of American Art at The Whitney Museum of American Art The Whitney Museum of American Art Whitney Museum of American Art Museum of American Art of American Art American Art Art

WTF!

I caught my girlfriend making out with some dude on the internet!!!

Film 7: "The Proposal" from Mike Lavoie on Vimeo.

Completely Gratuitous

SONNE STATT REAGAN

I woke up this morning with a song in my head and it won't go away. The only thing that can stop it is revamping Ronald Reagan's arms policies in Central America.

Activity of the Month

In the following order:

1. Watching Michael Jackson music videos online after work.
   
2. Moonwalking in the shower before bed.