Collage
Fresh Kills: Elegy II
- Description
- Framed collage titled Fresh Kills: Elegy II by John Schweitzer. This piece depicts a portion of a newspaper clipping from September 12, 2001, with the headline "Bin Laden Believes Terror His 'Heavenly Decree.'" Across the top is a portion of the Boston Globe issue of September 11, 2002, with an image of an American flag and text: "America remembers"; the text is partially burned. In the lower right is mail packaging labeled "FRAGILE," with an address label to John Schweitzer.
- Historical Notes
- In response to the events of 9/11, artist John Schweitzer created Fresh Kills: XXIV Elegies, a series of 24 collages made by attaching mixed materials, mainly found ephemera, onto a flat surface. Though he was not in New York on September 11, 2001, he had previously lived in the city for five years and was deeply saddened by the attacks that targeted his former home and country.
Curator's Comment
The career of Canadian artist John Schweitzer has focused predominantly on the production of mixed-media collages, works of art made by attaching materials onto a flat surface. As a former resident of New York, Schweitzer turned to his preferred medium to respond to the 9/11 tragedy through his art. Using materials found and gathered around Montreal, such as newspapers, paper bags, playing cards, and fabrics, Schweitzer set to work creating this series of 24 collages.
The title he gave to the finished series, Fresh Kills: XXIV Elegies, alludes to the then recently closed landfill facility in Staten Island where, from September 2001 to June 2002, wreckage from the World Trade Center site was transported and sifted for human remains, personal effects, and investigative evidence. It was a solemn place, closed to the public, and critical to forensic activities in service to the recovery mission during its 10 months of operation.
In a career spanning more than 40 years, Schweitzer has occupied many roles in the art world, including those of artist, collector, critic, and curator. In 2003, he was inducted into the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts.
The title he gave to the finished series, Fresh Kills: XXIV Elegies, alludes to the then recently closed landfill facility in Staten Island where, from September 2001 to June 2002, wreckage from the World Trade Center site was transported and sifted for human remains, personal effects, and investigative evidence. It was a solemn place, closed to the public, and critical to forensic activities in service to the recovery mission during its 10 months of operation.
In a career spanning more than 40 years, Schweitzer has occupied many roles in the art world, including those of artist, collector, critic, and curator. In 2003, he was inducted into the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts.
- Accession Number: C.2014.404.2
- Dimensions: 23 in X 26 in
- Dimensions (Metric): 58.42 cm X 66.04 cm
- Source: John A. Schweitzer
- Credit Line: Gift of the artist, in celebration of the resilient American spirit
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