Sculpture of Obama As Jesus Causes Stir (AP)

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

Sculpture of Obama As Jesus Causes Stir

By NATHANIEL HERNANDEZ
The Associated Press
Monday, April 2, 2007; 6:02 PM

CHICAGO -- He wears Jesus' robes and a neon blue halo, looks like Democratic
presidential candidate Barack Obama and is causing a stir at a Chicago art school.

An undergraduate student's papier mache sculpture of Obama as a messianic figure
_ entitled "Blessing" _ went on display Saturday at a downtown gallery run by the
School of the Art Institute of Chicago. By Monday, word of the piece had spread
on political blogs, and the school had been flooded with calls.

David Cordero, 24, made the sculpture for his senior show after noticing all the
attention Obama has received since he first hinted he may run for the presidency.

"All of this is a response to what I've been witnessing and hearing, this idea that
Barack is sort of a potential savior that might come and absolve the country of all
its sins," Cordero said. "In a lot of ways it's about caution in assigning all these
inflated expectations on one individual, and expecting them to change something
that many hands have shaped."

-snip-

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/02/AR2007040201149.html

[Ninja Jordan]

1. Should Obama come out in support of this?

[Kagemusha]

8. I think not.

It'd be somewhere in the area of publicly declaring support for satanic worship.

[Ninja Jordan]

11. 'Twas a joke

[pinto]

2. He's an articulate 24 year old, from the cited quotes. And the dean's comments make sense:

"In a lot of ways it's about caution in assigning all these inflated expectations on one individual, and expecting them to change something that many hands have shaped." (artist David Cordero, 24, said)

<snip>

Bruce Jenkins, dean of the art school's undergraduate program, said response to the piece _ part of a student exhibition _ has been mostly positive. He said people should take a close look at the sculpture and the context it was created in before judging it.

"When you see it, when you spend time it with it, you understand that it's not a provocative work at all," Jenkins said. "It opens a set of questions."

(ed for clarity)

[Cabcere]

6. But is he clean? n/t

[Kerrytravelers]

7. Bwwwwaaaaahhhhh !!!!!!!! **snort**

:rofl:

[MethuenProgressive]

3. "word of the piece had spread on political blogs" like Freeperville?

This is the first I've read of it.
I'm a Christian. And I'm not offended by art. Sounds rather inspired, if you ask me!

[Cabcere]

4. How much do you want to bet

that the people who are going to raise the biggest stink about this are the same people who have no problem with so-called "Christian" fundamentalists actually worshipping cardboard cutouts of Bush? :crazy: Just throwing that out there...

[Kerrytravelers]

5. I like Obama and all, but that thing is totally creepy looking. Glad he's making distance from it.

[slackmaster]

9. I thought this was going to be about a "Milk Chocolate Jesus" sculpture

:hide:

[Cabcere]

10. I thought so too, at first.

:hide:

[Orangepeel]

12. John Stewart did it first (and funnier)

in a report after the DNC convention a few months ago, he was commenting on the music that played for each candidate as they walked on stage. I don't remember any except that Chris Dodd's was the Who's "Who are you?" song and Obama's was "Jesus Christ, Superstar."

[Kagemusha]

13. The funny thing is Obama didn't actually use music.

He wanted to come off without the extra fanfare. Not as if he needed it.

So I laughed extra when Jon played that.