What Were They Thinking?
Anyone see anything wrong with this picture?
This "poster" or "artwork" or whatever you want to call it adorns the wall by the escalators leading up to the upper floors of the Harold Washington Library.
Now does anyone see anything wrong with it? We aren't against public art. We aren't book burners. If we don't like it, we don't patronize it. But in a public library paid for with public funds named after Chicago's first black mayor, do we really need a double entendre advocating a habit that has pretty much destroyed entire swaths of Chicago and it's inhabitants?
Unless we're embracing it now?
This "poster" or "artwork" or whatever you want to call it adorns the wall by the escalators leading up to the upper floors of the Harold Washington Library.Now does anyone see anything wrong with it? We aren't against public art. We aren't book burners. If we don't like it, we don't patronize it. But in a public library paid for with public funds named after Chicago's first black mayor, do we really need a double entendre advocating a habit that has pretty much destroyed entire swaths of Chicago and it's inhabitants?
Unless we're embracing it now?
Labels: dumb ideas
posted by SCC at 12:01 AM
33 Comments:
MERIT picks! Every last one of them!!
Hasn't that been up there for quite some time?
Perhaps it's a personal expression from a former crackhead! And no doubt paid for out of the City's Public Art Fund. Probably worth 10's of thousands of taxpayer dollars.
Hey, maybe Donna Dunnings boytoy painted it!
What? You don't recognize art when you see it?
It's just a subliminal message to help keep the underground economy going, SCC.
Uh-oh ?
I see a bunch of colored circular letters on this thing. Maybe the Olympic Committee should go after this "artist" for their trademark infringement and leave Chalkie alone.
Speaking of "artwork" and Harold Washington, this brings back memories of a student art exhibition at The School of The Art Institute of Chicago where some guy did a painting of Harold Washington dressed only in women's underwear. Several Alder-critics stormed the exhibit like the Gestapo and confiscated the "offensive artwork" prompting an ACLU lawsuit. The painting was returned the next day and an undisclosed amount of $$$ was paid to the artist.
Funny thing was, nobody would've even known about the "art" that was tarnishing Harold Washington's memory and legacy if it weren't for the Alder-clowns. Once they stormed the exhibit, while news cameras recorded the whole fiasco, that painting made national news and contributed to the legacy of the Chicago City Council being a total collection of boneheads ! ! ! !
you walk into the station with a fresh shave and shower, moments before giving your wife and kids a hug before leaving. open up the locker and put on your gear and head to roll call. the w/c gives the usual rah rah speech and make relief. you and your partner out into the great unknown-- run down 20 or so jobs, hang some paper, maybe make a pinch and go home. sounds like a good night to me-- but no, you get called into the office the next day-- you aren't doing enough, you have to fill in some of these boxes... you just laugh it off because the guy telling you this is some pussy who never made a pinch in their life and has been riding the desk their entire career. well boss, you need to get your little ass kissers in gear, you know, the ones who leave early everyday and get what they want everyday-- they will lead you to the promised land. leave a real cop alone.
I happen to know something about this artwork -- it's by a guy named Edgar Heap of Birds, and as you can probably tell, it deals with Native American themes. I can assure you that "Smoke rock" has nothing to do with crack.
Is it possible it does not mean what you imply it means? There seems to be a number of references in the other panels to native american phrases, so without full context, it is hard to embrace your reaction.
SCC - was today that slow of a news day for you or is your brain turning to jello? Why would you even waste your energy with this post? Save yourself for the much more meaningful posts that you've become famous for.
Anonymous said...
you walk into the station with a fresh shave and shower, moments before giving your wife and kids a hug before leaving. open up the locker and put on your gear and head to roll call. the w/c gives the usual rah rah speech and make relief. you and your partner out into the great unknown-- run down 20 or so jobs, hang some paper, maybe make a pinch and go home. sounds like a good night to me-- but no, you get called into the office the next day-- you aren't doing enough, you have to fill in some of these boxes... you just laugh it off because the guy telling you this is some pussy who never made a pinch in their life and has been riding the desk their entire career. well boss, you need to get your little ass kissers in gear, you know, the ones who leave early everyday and get what they want everyday-- they will lead you to the promised land. leave a real cop alone.
4/28/2009 01:02:00 AM
Again this attitude is citywide, the clout punk ass merit picks,and pets who were never the police expect "numbers" sorry assclowns we are done! Oh sorry except for the kids in msf and tru,who are skullsfull of mush that you are molding,to be future IR numbers when then fuck up and you tell them "we never told you to violate civil rights?!
Our Liberal Democrat Marxist Racebaiters have for years encouraged stupidity, vice and social pathology within their community. A poster like this, that encourages the use of dangerous drugs, is just another sign of their complete contempt for their own community.
Alas, these same stupid people vote, and they vote for the likes of B.O.
They will die young, but there will be a legacy of crime and illegitimate children as reminders.
Publicly funded art is just another form of welfare! Repeat that to yourself a few times.
I guess we should stick to police stuff, which we know about, and leave the critiquing of art to the people who know about that.
six-two-and-even over-and-out!
One thing can guarantee you is that none of the kids that will be visiting that library will know enough about ancient Native American culutre to see the difference.
They will look at that smoke rocks thing and apply it to their own personal experiences.
"SMOKE CRACK"to the true asshat that allowed that crap to be put on dispaly,why don't you go "SMOKE ASS CRACK" you jack ass.
Wasn't that the place built so all the south Loop bums have a place to B.M.?
Sounds like Native American stuff to me...SCC and followers you guys see the boogieman under your bed too?
It sounds like you're projecting your own interest in street drugs on this one.
This piece has been there for over ten years(visit the library much?) and in relation to the Native American theme(as others have mentioned) I doubt it has anything to do with crack.
I could see some outrage if it said "Drink whiskey".
That's not the only thing that going on in Harold's book museum. Asked the guards about all the wierd stuff they've caught people doing in there. Internet, meetings in bathrooms, interludes that should occur at the Sybaris.
Anonymous said...
you walk into the station with a fresh shave and shower, moments before giving your wife and kids a hug before leaving. open up the locker and put on your gear and head to roll call. the w/c gives the usual rah rah speech and make relief. you and your partner out into the great unknown-- run down 20 or so jobs, hang some paper, maybe make a pinch and go home. sounds like a good night to me-- but no, you get called into the office the next day-- you aren't doing enough, you have to fill in some of these boxes... you just laugh it off because the guy telling you this is some pussy who never made a pinch in their life and has been riding the desk their entire career. well boss, you need to get your little ass kissers in gear, you know, the ones who leave early everyday and get what they want everyday-- they will lead you to the promised land. leave a real cop alone.
4/28/2009 01:02:00 AM
If I'm going to be confronted with the same situatuation, I'll just sign my name using my new signature: "Thanks Nothanks"
"smoke rock" 3rd floor
Taxpayer-funded advertising for illegal narcotics? That's nothing. The Harold Washington Library downtown has become a semen-reeking peep show, a masturbation center for Internet pornography viewers. It was all over TV not long ago -- here's the whole story.
"...WGN’s concealed cameras (VIDEO) show dozens of patrons looking at adult pornography in plain view. Even though each of the 135 computers have attached privacy screens, aisle after aisle the images were impossible to avoid...
"...we set up our camera right in the middle of the third floor. Still, with our obvious presence, the lewd video could still be spotted in different parts of the room...
"That's what's troubling to Neliswa Masondo, and she says she doesn't visit the third floor anymore.
“This person was touching himself, then I realized I didn't even want to touch the computer,” Masondo said. “It’s unhygienic and gross.”"
http://www.wgntv.com/library
I think thou protesteth too much......If these liberal savages want to smoke rock for God sakes let them!!!! Stupidity seeks it's own level. Thank God this is mainly in "the community".
"This piece has been there for over ten years(visit the library much?) and in relation to the Native American theme(as others have mentioned) I doubt it has anything to do with crack.
I could see some outrage if it said "Drink whiskey".
4/28/2009 10:40:00 AM"
So, for ten years nobody at the library has ever figured out that a word, or sequence of words, that held a specific meaning to a historical group of people, who lived many years in the past, just might have an entirely different meaning to a group of people who are now living in the present?
Said group of people being, presumably, children who, at their very impressionable age, may very well understand those sequences of words, and their present meanings, to be an encouragement, by the symbol of authority which the public library represents, for them to engage in the activities which those current meanings indicate?
Nobody?
Not even your wise assed self?
"Is it possible it does not mean what you imply it means? There seems to be a number of references in the other panels to native american phrases, so without full context, it is hard to embrace your reaction.
4/28/2009 01:37:00 AM"
Gee, and just think how confused the kids that have seen this have been.
Oh, wait, the kids weren't confused, because they know what, in their present 'culture', the words 'SMOKE ROCK' mean.
Unless, of course, they're all up to speed on their Native American history.
INMATES ARE RUNNING THE ASYLUM SAYS:
I told you all that inmates ARE running the asylum, didn't I? So why the surprise? Pin-Heads run the Shit-cago Lie-brary System too.
police on horseback is worse waste of money
That artwork has been in the library for a long time. I've seen it hundreds of times and never made that connection. In the context of the other messages in the work, "rock" connotes literal rock.
It does irritate me in one way though: the words are formed of all capital letters - except that the artist used small 'g's in several places. Inconsistent!
Just A (grammar and spelling obsessed) Civilian
OK- this is just silly. For those who are criticizing it because the words can be misinterpreted by people who come from a drug infested urban milieu, you are no better than the liberals who claim a test is biased because when junior sees the word "cell" on a biology exam his first instinct is to think of the lockup...
Not withstanding that Mr Heap of Birds has a negative view of the country, and also not commenting on his other works which denigrate so much of what I hold dear, and NOT at all commenting on how I find his work to be juvenile cartoonish trash,
I asked about this a decade ago after reading it at the HWL. I was given the standard, It's Native American for a place of peace, a place where the peace pipes are smoked, that's what it means. After I told the person that was not what it would mean for almost everyone looking at the so-called art, I was accussed of being a racist and anti-rights kind of person.
I wish I could remember the guys name i talked to that day.
One last civilian comment if you fine folks will allow it,,,
I was never a HArold fan at all, but unlike Daley, at least he could read and talk in public.
"This piece has been there for over ten years(visit the library much?) and in relation to the Native American theme(as others have mentioned) I doubt it has anything to do with crack.
I could see some outrage if it said "Drink whiskey".
4/28/2009 10:40:00 AM"
The Library opened in 1991 or 92 and this piece was there from the outset.
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