Mark Food: 1992 Protest Signs

A political convention allows for a physical manifestation of similar political ideologies. Such a gathering promotes an attitude of shared thinking, an attempt to focus a shared opinion among the masses of participants. As the election of 1992 approached, the US was simultaneously nearing the end of an attempted “shared thought”, as what had been a 12-year Republican hold on the Whitehouse would soon end with the election of Bill Clinton.

Thus, when Mark Flood decided to make protest signs for the National Republican Convention of the ‘92 election, he chose sentiments that were likely shared among many of the Republican Party’s proponents. However, Flood’s paintings are blatantly sarcastic, appropriating politically charged text alongside screen-printed and distorted images of the men who represented these beliefs. The recent show at Karma Gallery New York (Jan 11.- Feb 27th) allows us to consider these signs in the context of historical hindsight and contemporary application. What is the duration of protest and how does the protest medium influence intent?

Each sign is characterized by a clear political message:  

BUSH IS GOD

GET A JOB
VOTE FOR LAW AND ORDER
FREE THE RICH

FOUR MORE YEARS 

BE A NARC

The text is inherently simple and brief. Flood relies upon the minute differentiation and disorganization of his silkscreen prints to call the sincerity of the text into question. Instead of giving clear instructions, Flood implores his audience to think about his signs and come to their own conclusions. There is a lack of guidance;  Fitting to oppose the convention, considering its “shared thinking” and directive mentality. 

Though Flood was no stranger to more progressive political ideologies, he almost never engaged with politics directly. Flood’s side-line participation in government can likely be attributed to his involvement in controversial and sometimes illicit activities such as drugs, gay-sex, and punk rock (KarmaKarma.org). He approached life independently, preferring to not have authorities and bureaucratic systems interject. It makes sense then, that his political posters would engage in politics obliquely. Flood resists inserting his own voice into the political discourse, but rather he re-frames his opponent’s words to allow for hindsight and re-consideration. 

Consider the work Be A Narc [Two Bushes With Flag], in which two headshots of George Bush Sr. stare back at the viewer with confronting eyes and a serious disposition.  In the upper right portrait, Bush is printed twice so that he has two sets of eyes. How much does he really see? Bush’s knowing expression supersedes the large letters “BE A NARC” at the bottom of the print. The poster illuminates many American’s underlying feelings of uneasiness towards the police and arguably government observation. Bush’s eyes are tired and disapproving. The cartoon-like flag sits prominently in the composition, but instead of representing patriotism there is a sense of artificiality;  This is a symbol long-abused to promote alternating ideologies and ambiguous in its representation of justice or corruption. Flood combines the portraits, text, and flag to raise questions of the justice system and the leaders who influence it. Tension arises in the dialogue between the three elements on the sparsely laid out posters, resulting in underlying satirical opposition towards the incumbent nominee and his beliefs. 

Flood was said to have attempted to recover many of the posters once they had been “baptized by reality” at the convention protests. We can ask ourselves to what extent an object, especially artistic, can affect our perceived narrative of history. Flood’s objects allow us to see the Republican Convention of 1992 through a lense of wariness and irony. The sentiments he represented still reflect upon the agitation of the time, but have the signs, now hanging on gallery walls, lost their protesting power? Probably not, we continue to look at the signs and prescribe them to our current political climate. Flood’s appropriation of these phrases and images allows for a cyclical process of thinking about the original intended purpose and their current role. Flood’s signs reject historical objection but oscillate between timely application and re-consideration. A similar protest continues in this country and Flood’s signs have not expired.

Source:  https://karmakarma.org/exhibitions/mark-flood-protest-signs-from-1992/press-release/