Art Lies, Volume 23, Summer 1999 Page: 46
60 p. : ill. (some col.) ; 28 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Curtis Martin
GALLERY 414
FORT WORTH
by Sara Jayne ParsonsThe subversive lesson of American History
and other dirty jokes is neither elaborate nor
erudite. And, in a sense, that is part of its
meandering, high-schoolish charm. Tackling
issues of political power, patriotism, nostalgia
and identity through a variety of media, Fort
Worth artist, Curtis Martin combines
discourse from post-war decades with 1990's
cynicism. The result is an unapologetic collec-
tion of visual sound bytes that leave you alter-
nately laughing and cringing all the way to the
voter's booth. If you can't hear the bombsbursting in air yet, you soon will.
The title of the show is derived from a
series of works by Martin inspired by events of
American history entitled Know Your
America, 1999. Here the grandiosity of
history is undermined by the artist's manipu-
lation of discarded everyday items; stuff
Martin calls "junk" ranging from broken chil-
dren's toys and second hand books, to ashtrays
and bathroom scales. The effect is somewhat
disconcerting. The viewer will be simultane-
ously amused and uncomfortable in this
history classroom.
One encounters Know your America #10
upon entering the front room in Gallery 414.
Here, a simple typewritten account of a radio
address given by President Clinton on April 3,
1999 stressing the importance of current
American involvement in Kosovo is tacked to
the wall. Several brightly colored feather
headdresses punctuate the sheets of paper;
seemingly innocent objects, children's dress-
up toys that bear the manufacturer's label,
"Brave Chief."
In this context, Clinton's vocal expres-
46 ARTLIES SUMMER 1999Curtis Martin
Know Your America #8, 1999
(detail)
Record player, books, dollparts.
Photo: Courtesy of the Artist
Ssions of concern for the "erased
identity" of "displaced people" in
Kosovo, who have been "forced
to abandon their homeland" in
the face of death, seem to point
the finger of genocide in a more homely direc-
tion. This kitschy crudeness of appropriation,
with the blatant reference to Native-American
history in the United States, becomes a
Martin trademark.
The dogma of Know Your America #8
works in a similar fashion. Two 1950's books
sit upright across the diameter of a record
turntable. As they slowly revolve, their titles
"The J. Oppenheimer Story" and "Let's Visit
Japan" appear to merge. Here, one's persistence
of vision is jarred by a small plastic doll arm
that extends in a salute from the needle arm of
the record player. Roughly painted and
burned, the doll part is a sinister static compo-
nent of a machine of repetitive indoctrination.
Here the needle of patriotism appears to be
stuck on the record of history.
Political Discourse, 1992 can be discerned
as a downright goofy contrast to the threat of
atomic annihilation. Dueling t.v. screens
display a conversation between Ross Perot and
Curtis Martin. While Perot presents an
infomercial view of how the economic prob-
lems of America can be solved, Martinresponds with moronic behavior, appearing to
answer Perot's rhetorical questions until he is
sufficiently infuriated by political talk to the
point of yelling "Uber-Ross" and making facial
expressions that surpass the antics of Beavis
and Butthead.
By the time you reach Know Your America
#9, in the middle room of Gallery 414, it
becomes more than obvious that Martin is not
sheepish about proffering his own ideas about
the connections between education, history,
politics and race. A small bed and desk are
installed in night-light dimness. Remnants of
children's toys are scattered about the desktop
and floor. Lincoln logs are arranged in the
form of a swastika next to a white-power
pamphlet. An abandoned chemistry set adver-
tises "Adventures in Eugenics," next to which
four foam miniature human brains appear
ready for transplant.
In this darkened, intimate space, the
horror of bigotry is suffocating, and as you
escape into the last room of Gallery 414 you
are confronted with a denouement of sorts. A
sole American flag hangs on one wall from
behind which a calming voice is heard
repeating "listen to me, listen to me, listen to
me." Upon closer aural inspection, Pledge from
the Flag of the United States of America is
anything but comforting as it promises "You
will feel better. . . You will remain relaxed,
poised and confident at all times...Your sense
of taste will improve. . ." Here, Martin's
manipulation of a 1960's hypnosis tape trans-
forms a national icon into a somewhat
menacing red, white and blue straitjacket.
American History and other dirty jokes
contains a host of other patriotic symbols and
indexical vocabulary that highlight issues of
freedom, choice and human rights. References
ranging from cheerleading to McCarthyism
provide vehicles for Martin's investigation of
jingoism. This is perhaps one area of concern.
Martin's range (content and materials) is
expansive at the expense of the cohesiveness of
the entire show. What ends up tying it
together is the sense that Martin's tongue is
firmly embedded in cheek. Earnest and
provoking, American History and other dirty
jokes is a quirky juxtaposition of offensive
stand-up comedy and historical evaluation.
Overall class grade = B. O
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Lightman, Victoria H. Art Lies, Volume 23, Summer 1999, periodical, 1999; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth228053/m1/48/?q=%22Bryant%2C+John%22: accessed June 5, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .