For Immediate Release:
May 7th, 2005
WMD HEADED for TEXAS!
As the hunt for WMDs in Iraq came to an official close last week, preparations for the deployment of another kind of WMD begin. On May 9 at 7:30 AM a Warehouse of Mass Distribution will be transported from Tennessee to Texas. This WMD was constructed by conceptual artist Mel Chin and his students while he served as the 2004 Basler Chair of Excellence in the Arts and Sciences at East Tennessee State University.
Beyond a concern in September that WMDs would not be found in Iraq, the artists were motivated by the words of Rev. John Forbes of Harlem’s Riverside Church, “Poverty is a Weapon of Mass Destruction.” Combating the terror of poverty through a work of art became a meaningful challenge.
“Armed and Generous” with social commentary and social service, the single-wide missile will head south to Texas on a thousand mile, six state trajectory.
The WMD will participate in the festivities of the internationally recognized Everyone’s Art Car Parade in Houston, Texas on May 14th. Following this prestigious honor it will continue its intended mission to serve the poor. In true Tennessee fashion, it will volunteer all of its 1300 cu. ft. mobile space to organizations like Food Not Bombs Houston, a group dedicated to feeding the homeless.
The WMD will take off in the early hours on Monday from Johnson City, TN for its intended target, The Orange Show Center for Visionary Arts in Houston, Texas. ETA on May 12, 2005.
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