Artist Statement
Public advertisements--which we all naturally absorb by virtue of our participation in public space--serve as shared narratives in our otherwise fragmented and warring culture. Where once we had the tale of "Adam and Eve" or, if we are Japanese, say, "The Tale of Genji" as shared stories, now we have Tanqueray, DKNY and Home Equity Loan marketing messages. In this piece, I am drawing out the implied stories that appear in subway billboard ads, which count among the cultural devices we still have with which to draw common self-definition. Here, Eve is a shoe ad, Adam plies vodka and the Snake...pushes the ever tempting home mortgage.