Rebecca Miller Artist Statement

The (un)Making America series is a satirical parody of the real and rumored personalities, habits, decisions, and actions of the 45th president of the United States of America.

The image of Straw Man first came to me in March of 2018 when I was watching Real Time with Bill Maher. When speaking about the president one guest referred to his approach as a “straw man argument”. I immediately envisioned a sculpture of Trump made out of straw. This image stayed with me for months until I finally decided to make it in an attempt to purge him from my mind. I began constructing this life-sized series of characters on July 4, 2018. Once I started to make Straw Man, other personalities soon crept into my subconsciousness.

I collected disturbing propaganda items from both the 2012 and 2016 U.S. presidential elections with the goal of transforming those items into passive or equally as absurd imagery as the original. I had not previously come across an official campaign website with materials that were so nasty and quite frankly hypocritical as the ones on the 2016 Donald J. Trump for President campaign website. I wasn’t sure I should even bother to try and transform those items into something positive but instead shine a mirror on their hatefulness; thus Stone Thrower was conceived.  Stone Thrower was the second born in the family (un)Making America, which highlights the items I had purchased off the official Donald J. Trump for President 2016 campaign website two-weeks before the election - shirt, buttons, hat, and yard signs. Other characters have followed while more children are gestating in my mind.

While seeking an exhibition space to display this cast of characters, I had the idea of creating “looking for a roommate” flyers to post in the bathrooms of galleries and museums in New York City; the performance of posting these flyers quickly extended to the streets. The performance has continued to other locations as I travel the world seeking suitable roommates for my children. Gallery and museum directors, as well as some celebrities, have also been mailed birth announcements for many of the boys. The boys are willing to travel and would love to be included in exhibitions or permanent collections.

The series has been my coping mechanism as a way of dealing with the confusion, fear, and exhaustive daily bombardment in the news of disturbing decisions, ridiculous tweets, and bizarre behaviors that constantly derive from this unconventional leader.

Guide to Pricing:

Straw Man - $400,000 (or best offer)

https://www.businessinsider.com/how-much-does-the-us-president-get-paid-2016-11

Stone Thrower - $66,000,000 (or best offer)

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-trump/figures-show-trump-spent-66-million-of-his-own-cash-on-election-campaign-idUSKBN13Y0AE

#MePredatorToo - $130,000 (or best offer)

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/27/nyregion/stormy-daniels-trump-payment.html

Narcissist - $20,000 (or best offer)

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/11/01/this-is-the-portrait-of-himself-that-donald-trump-bought-with-20000-from-his-charity/

Mini Me & Friend - $35,000,000 (or best offer)

https://www.npr.org/2019/11/27/783487901/the-hold-on-ukraine-aid-a-timeline-emerges-from-impeachment-probe

Fossil Fool - $741,074 (or best offer)

https://www.forbes.com/sites/chasewithorn/2018/07/05/scott-pruitts-replacement-has-earned-more-than-700000-as-a-fossil-fuel-industry-lobbyist/#3d4722e334ca

King Covid - $1,800,000,000,000 (or best offer) 

https://www.heritage.org/budget-and-spending/commentary/how-big-the-covid-19-cares-act-relief-bill

 King Covid - SPECIAL Sale price $10,000 (non-refundable)

https://www.newsweek.com/man-who-bought-10000-worth-toilet-paper-hand-sanitizer-denied-refund-1498343