We Even Lost Our Despair, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
We Wait For the Embassy to Open, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
We Wait For News On The Radio As We Watch the Sky
ceramic and painted paper diorama
In The Morning We Pray, In The Evening We Pray Again, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
Family Portrait Before Some People Leave, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
Every Ancestor Talks To Me at Once, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
Path of Pilgrims, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
It's a Girl!, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
Don't Go Too Far, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
Superman Is Altered To Have A Beard, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
The Children Dream of Soil and The Parents Bite Their Tongues, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
Arab Bureaucracy, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
Hassan Moves Closer to His Elusive Goal, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
The Guard Won't Let Us Through, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
The French Name Things For Us and We Intentionally Mispronounce Them, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
Aswan Winter Sun, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
Visiting The Ruins Which Are Now A Shopping Mall And Future Ruin, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
The Mourning Ritual, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
Border Crossing, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
Jammed Frequencies, 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
What Remains After the Village Is Emptied? 2018
ceramic and painted paper diorama
And Never Elsewhere, 2014
A community flag parade from the Newark Museum to the Newark Public Library, carrying the words of John Cotton Dana.
And Never Elsewhere, 2014
Covers of The High Line Magazine The Maps Issue, 2017
A special edition of the magazine featuring artist maps.
Ideological Tug of War, 2013
I read an article about Winston’s Hiccup, which refers to the really irregular border of Jordan, supposedly because Churchill drew the boundary after a long, boozy meal. It got me thinking about the deep attachments to territories, and the arbitrary lines that divide places, ideologies and identities. For Ideological Tug of War, I wanted to make the pull over an arbitrary line more literal, situating this theme in a community performance about enacting sides, through the game of tug of war. Based on student input, 16 different categories of idea systems (ranging from the eternally puzzling faith vs. state to the more absurd kittens vs. puppies) played/pulled against each other to determine an ultimate winner, using a March Madness type of bracketing system. Logic was the Ultimate Winner.
Ideological Tug of War performed at Austin Peay College, TN.
Communications Afloat, 2014
Communications Afloat is a poem, performance and book project based on the International Code of Signals.
Communications Afloat, 2014
Communications Afloat is a poem I wrote using combinations of flag definitions from the International Code of Signals. The poem is performed on the ocean, as a visual reading, where each line is raised and lowered on the signal mast of a boat.
stanza 2
The International Code of Signals is a set of 40 alphabetical and numerical flags that are used by vessels to communicate important messages. This globally understood system of symbol-based communication was first drafted in 1855 and remains essential to safe navigation in open waters
stanza 3
stanza 4
stanza 5
stanza 6
Performing Communications Afloat in a pool
Proposal for boat performance.
Where Does The South Start? 2012
paint on streamer paper, installed in different locations in Sewannee, TN During a recent trip to Tennessee, I asked many people from various states in the region "Where does the South start?" Everybody had a definite answer, and they were all different answers.
Professional Porch Sitters Union, Asbury Park, 2014
A leisure union based on a labor union.
PPSU Organizing table
I started a chapter of the Professional Porch Sitters Union in Asbury Park, NJ. Local 1893 began on June 26, 2014 on a porch on Ocean Avenue. We are a leisure union, based on a labor union. Our union is in session when the flag is flying on the porch. We had different union members organize sitting sessions and recruit throughout the summer.
PPSU Local 1893 Asbury Park members
By early August, we had recruited over 100 members.
Recruitment Flyers
Conceptual Tattoos, 2008
Text based versions of common tattoos. Available exclusively by Patrick Dean at Neptune Tattoo.