Pursued, Descending a Staircase, with No. 2 (2023)
Pursued, Descending a Staircase with No. 2
Pursued, Descending a Staircase with No. 2 draws upon formal and thematic elements from Marcel Duchamp’s Nude Descending a Staircase, No. 2 (1912) to depict the duplicity, treachery and cowardice of Josh Hawley, Senator of Missouri. Senator Hawley is seen here in a gesture of solidarity with insurrectionists, including Donald Trump, on January 6, 2021. Hawley was one of two senators behind the effort to disrupt the certification of Joseph Biden’s election on January 6th, embracing claims he no-doubt knew to be false as a pretext for his action. As revealed in security camera footage screened during the hearings of the January 6th Committee chaired by Representative Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, Hawley fled the Capitol running. descending an escalator to flee the mob he had earlier egged on. Here, we see Hawley’s stature shrinking as he descends, both literally and figuratively. At his side is Senator Mitch McConnell, kissing the butt of a red-capped figure who is shoveling something. The St. Louis arch and a Hollywood Star situate Hawley’s actions at the intersection of the Gateway City and media stardom.
See the exhibition on YouTube.