"Prison Papers" is a series of drawings on found vintage prison record forms, in which I've depicted weaponry from the world's arsenal of missiles and bombs. As I began this series in 2005, I became very intrigued with the idea of drawing within the context of the prison form's tablature, which I found I could use to present the details about these weapons. I also became enamored with the cartoon-like nomenclature for these missiles like; Walleye, Bull Pup and Shillelagh and wanted to explore the immense contradiction this presented within the context of the hideous nature of these weapons. My intent was that these drawings, through their two-sided framing device, might free the viewer from certain notions of conformity and convention and through their content will suggest to the viewer that, to the extent that our economy depends on a vast infrastructure of military investment, the notion of security can be a form of imprisonment. Kenny Cole September 2006
Drawing
Completed in: 2006
28 x 17 inches
Near or in Monroe, Me / United States
artist: Kenny Cole
The artist, Kenny Cole, writes:
Mary, who adopted this drawing, is an artist who works for a law firm in NYC. Her office environment is pretty drab and she thought that this drawing, on its prison record form, would be an interesting addition; particularly in the context of the clientele that passes through the offices. She says: "At this point, this is a personal project of mine, to place interesting and challenging art in the office and see what happens."







