Political Monstrosities are stuffed creatures that represent frequency of word use. Each monster represents a different year of George W. Bush's presidency, and the aspects of the monster represent the number of times selected words were used during that year’s State of the Union address. Aspects that are not associated with words—things like size and shape—were chosen for aesthetic rather than representational reasons. The colors used are red, white and various shades of blue. The six words (peace, hope, trust, war, terror and threat) were chosen because of the vague qualities they try to describe. Each of these can be interpreted in a multitude of different ways, some comforting and some terrifying. By converting the quantifiable characteristics of these words—how often they were used—into a physical form, the Monstrosities attempt to give shape and physical definition to the speeches. |
