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The Church of Sharpie |
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| In May 2005, I gathered sixteen assistants for a Sharpie drawing marathon in a large, temporary studio in the East Village. We produced twenty huge (190" x 120") drawings outlining the map of the USA, each with commentary on subjects such as the Civil War, space shuttles, state flowers, the Bicentennial, the draft, road tripping, love, God, and the baby boom. Typically I would outline the drawings overnight, and the assistants would come in and ink my outlines during the day and evening, so there were always three shifts running. Over the course of the month, as we listened to the wide variety of music everyone brought in, shared lunches and stories, we also invented a language and developed a cult around this magnificent household marker. Words such as 'Sharpologist' were invented. A range of up to twelve Sharpie middle-tones were achieved with the fading marker, while 'Black' took on a different meaning. My assistants, students, and graduates from various New York art schools bore titles such as 'The Supervisor of Paper Cutting and Protector of Fingertips,' 'Manager of Middle-tones,' and 'Secretary of Finesse'. One day Jason Schmidt came over to shoot this photo of us for V magazine. I think it was he who named it 'The Church of Sharpie.'. | |
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Photo by Jason Schmidt for V magazine, June 2005. |
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| The End, marker on paper, 190 x 120".
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See detail |
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| The Spirit of '76 , marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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America For You, marker on paper, 190 x 120". See detail |
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| Baby Boom, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| Beauty Free, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| Free Beauty, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| God Is All Over You, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| Draft Me Hard, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| Home Sweet Home, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| USA Liberty, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| We Remember Pearl Harbor U.S.A, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| USA Now!!, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| Please Help Yourself, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| Real Real Estate Flowers, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| You Are My Roadtrip, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| Outer Space Inner Peace, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| Cold War Hot Stuff, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| The War for The Union With Love, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| Welcome Sometimes, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
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| Oh! Yes, marker on paper, 190 x 120". | |
texts on The Church of Sharpie: 'Magic Marker', Visionnaire, no. 38, Winter 2005-06. |
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