The pandemic was weird. I think for many, including myself, it was a stark reminder of how unprepared we are as a country for emergency responses. It was also a sad look into our government’s priorities, paired with the deep national polarization that grew even larger during this time. When the George Floyd killing occurred, we were already in the depths of “lock down.” Emotions were running high and the terrible footage of the arrest turned deadly shook every viewer. People were really angry and they took to the streets to make that anger known. The government response to those protests is something I will leave up to your discretion. All I know is I didn’t like what I was seeing.
And then President Trump stood in front of a church with a Bible.
Local photographer, Jeff Weber, had a shoot lined up with some incredible art from designer and fabricator, Alexis Lincicome. He asked if I would take Behind the Scenes video of the process. I agreed, if he would also let me capture some footage for my own idea. We showed up to the old church early in the day. Alexis got model Paolo into her custom wing jacket and in front of the camera. Most of the afternoon was spent helping Jeff get the shots he wanted with Paolo and a live dove release. But, alas, at the end of the day I had a half hour to get the shots I had proposed.
I want to leave all interpretation up to you, the viewer, but I ended up finding a creative way to interpret Trump holding his Bible in front of the church that day. Let’s just say I set out to figure what page the Bible’s bookmark was on, and went from there. I encourage you to watch my explainer video (below) as it helps shed light on the artistic and research process.
We are all living through such weird times, and I’m sure they are only bound to get more so in the future. With each turn, there is art to be made.
