Inflammatory Essays

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In the 1970s Jenny Holzer began papering public spaces in New York City with posters bearing carefully written, slogan-like sayings suggestive of universal truths, such as “THE ABUSE OF POWER COMES AS NO SURPRISE.” Since then, she has produced a wide variety of text-based works that question consumerism and challenge existing structures of power in politics and society. In this gallery, her colorful posters bear intense passages based on the extreme positions of a wide spectrum of world leaders. Holzer described these essays as showing “how dangerous and absurd it is to be a fanatic, but how important it is to get things done.” Alternatively, her scrolling LED arrays read almost as advertisements or tweets, echoing our modern modes of communication.

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