http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/statue-of-liberty-collage-mark-wagner
American have this profound idea that Liberty is a quality that every man, woman, and child is born with, but in reality it costs a lot of money to have true individual freedom in the US. Those with money run our country and almost everyone has a conflict of interest relating to his or her own personal income (just take a look at Monsanto and you’ll see the overlap between Government officials and the leaders of Monsanto). Liberty seems like such a simple ideal, but this piece of art made out of US money attests to the complexity of the true meaning. It’s hard to get and there are constant forces encroaching upon it. If you look inside the Lady Liberty you see there are demons of greed? (not sure what to make of the little ambiguous guys running around) controlling and manipulating the inner workings that seem to be the house and workplace of many George Washingtons (whom is being devoured in panel 11 by the demon).
Thanks for sharing. This is an incredible and incredibly interested piece of art. I can’t help thinking that it is telling a story, a fall from grace story. What do you think? Is this about how the Statue of Liberty represents the best of us and the best oft he nation and somehow, this says and lots of narratives about the Statue of Liberty say, we have, as a nation, fallen from grace (or been duped to take a different course)?
I did a little more research and this work was produced in 2009. The artist’s name is Mark Wagner and he said “A lot of my dollar collage work focuses on issues of American identity, and there isn’t a much stronger symbol of American Identity than either the dollar bill or Miss Liberty, to change the one into the other seemed to fit.”
I would definitely say it’s a story. I think a fall from grace is a definite underlying theme, but I also think that like many other portrayals of the Statue of Liberty, there’s that sense that things can be mended. I think what gives me this idea is the movement that he manages to create.There’s a lot going on and maybe it’s not all bad. In panel 6 there are even George Washingtons seeming to be cleaning or repairing the statue or maybe they’re just covering up the sinister inner workings? I feel like every part of this work has dual meaning.
-Katie G.