The ‘artist’ behind a controversial billboard that was recently erected in Phoenix, Karen Fiorito, says that she and her husband are suddenly receiving death threats from residents who are apparently slightly less than amused with Fiorito’s provocative form of ‘art’. The massive red billboard, which was commissioned by a Phoenix art gallery, depicts President Trump wearing a Russian flag pin, flanked by mushroom-cloud explosions and dollar signs that resemble Nazi swastikas.
Fiorito celebrated the launch of the billboard on her twitter account last Friday with the following message:
This happened today in Phoenix. My Anti-@realDonaldTrump billboard. Enjoy. #antitrump #Trump #resist #ImpeachTrump #dumptrump #TheResistance http://pic.twitter.com/dCpzOk8s95
— Karen Fiorito (@buddhacatpress) March 17, 2017
The artist said she knew the piece would be controversial but felt compelled to proceed anyway, saying “a lot of people are feeling this way and I’m just trying to express what I think is on a lot of people’s minds these days.” Per the Arizona Republic:
“Billboards are perfect, because you don’t have to go to a gallery to see it,” she said. “You’re creating a dialogue with the public. You’re reaching people you’d never reach with your artwork.”
“I’ve been called a communist, a Satan worshiper,” she said. “I’ve been told I’m a ‘very, very sick person.’ I’m not sure what that means. I haven’t been answering the phone. My husband has because he’s not afraid to talk to anyone, but he told me he received a couple death threats this morning. … He said, ‘They were coming to get us with their boys.’”
“At first I was really excited about doing it, but then you always have this fear, this ‘Oh my God, what’s going to happen if I do this?’ ” she said.
“Something that really concerned us was this idea of a dictatorship where things were going in a certain direction.”
Fiorito said she wanted to create a symbol of “resistance” with her piece. “It’s more of a form of resistance, a form of protest,” she said. “I feel that I’m really just speaking for other people who might not be able to say anything, or speak out, or may not feel safe in doing so. Part of it, the back of it, is a call to unity. It’s a call for people who feel like they’re in the minority to come together.”
Of course, Fiorito, was also the artist behind a similar billboard protesting former President George W. Bush…you know, because there’s no such thing as a legitimate Republican President.
Ironically, while Fiorito is suddenly very concerned about a Trump dictatorship, she didn’t seem so concerned when President Obama legislated from the White House via a relentless flow of executive orders, many of which constitutional lawyers felt, at a bare minimum, pushed the limits of the constitutional powers afforded to the President…wonder why?
via http://ift.tt/2nbfSTK Tyler Durden