Over the course of a month, 60+ hours of work, and 6 gallons of acrylic paint, I created the piece shown above. This piece, entitled Die Mauer (The Wall), was created for an adjudicated exhibition hosted for and by students enrolled in the Typography II course at York College of Pennsylvania in the York College Galleries. For this Typorama exhibition, students were tasked with creating a project that experimented with typography and the many mediums it can appear. My project involved the injection of acrylic paint into large sheets of bubble wrap, resulting in a 24 x 8 ft tapestry. My artist's statement that accompanied my project can be seen below.
The pieces that resulted after the end of the month were then adjudicated by a panel of four judges: two higher-level students and two professors. These judges evaluated each piece and chose which pieces would made it into the exhibition.
I was one of eleven students selected for the Typorama 2019 exhibition.
Die Mauer (The Wall) Artist Statement
There is a heightened media coverage of bigotry demonstrated against people of different ethnicities, genders, and religions. The media is especially focused on our president, who is attempting to build a wall along the United States’ southern border. This wall, along with other factors, would somehow allow the United States to return its previous grandeur. However, this wall dramatizes the separation between “us” and “them,” and this component of “us” versus “them” reminds me of the culture of Nazi Germany right before it invaded Poland and began World War II.
“Die Mauer” means “the wall” in German. The typeface that is replicated and augmented, “Koch Fette Deustch Schrift,” was originally designed by Rudolf Koch between 1908 and 1921. It was later adapted and digitized by Peter Wiegel. This typeface draws heavily on the handlettering of German manuscripts, which were referenced excessively in Nazi propaganda to “make Germany great again.” Sound familiar?
The medium of bubble wrap is temporary and disposable. It, like hate speech, pops and crumbles under direct confrontation. Bigotry is transparent and fragile. So, rather than giving the words or the reference to Nazi Germany power, I want it to be devalued. By using a medium designed to be destroyed and defaced, the hate-filled symbol of a wall cannot hold power.
The amount of work placed into this project has been immense. I have spent over 60 hours injecting nearly six gallons of paint into bubble wrap. I have listened to the entirety of Gettysburg: The Last invasion by Allen C. Guelzo, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis, and so many hour-long The Vergecast and Ear Biscuits podcasts that I have traveled back to recordings made in January. Not to mention all the Motown, Classic Rock, and Billy Joel I have listened to on repeat. I am completely thankful for the challenging opportunity that this Typorama project has provided.
