COCKED and GAGGED
an installation by Susan Calza and Dominique Gustin
On view June 2 - July 23, 2023
Opening reception:
June 2, 2023
5:00pm-8:00pm
in participation with Montpelier Art Walk
Gallery Hours:
Friday 11am - 6pm
Saturday 11am - 6pm
Sunday 11am - 6pm
By appointment: susancalza@gmail.com“COCKED and GAGGED”, is a mixed media installation which references the escalating numbers of American Mass Shootings in 2023. Each Mass Shooting incident is indicated by a 23k gilded and numbered hanging tag. To date there have been 227 Mass Shootings in the US, represented by 227 hanging paper tags.
The theme returns to the gallery as fatality numbers escalate. In 2019 she opened The Susan Calza Gallery with “Domestic Disasters”, an installation referencing the 340 Mass Shooting in 2018.
The question is raised, “Where does our power ultimately lie?” “Can we ultimately affect change? What is our responsibility in the wake of ongoing tragedy?” The major cause of death for children in the US is now gun violence. Clearly, nothing of significance has been done to date.
In addition to the hundreds of tags, a daily diary is on view recording the details and when possible, the names of the victims. It is up to the viewer’s discretion as to whether or not to engage with this recorded information.
On opposite walls, facing each other are two self-portraits: Dominique Gustin’s self portrait, “INERTIA” 2020 which was created during the height of the pandemic, and Susan Calza’s self portrait, “Susan Packs a Pistol” 2022-2023 created using stills from Calza’s 2022 video “Blameless”. These two images channel a very different kind of power.
Gustin’s figure is muffled by her own hair, her eyes are closed and she is muted and gagged. Gustin’s piece was not created with gun violence in mind. However, it just as easily speaks to our collective sense of bewilderment and powerlessness in the face of this burgeoning and uniquely American tragedy.
Calza’s piece is an in-your-face hard hitting confrontation. She holds a pistol and is pointing it at the viewer. It is an unsympathetic testament to the oversized power of the vocal minority.
The exhibition will evolve through December 31, 2023 as a record keeping device of US Mass Shootings. Gallery Director Susan Calza will invite a number of artists to exhibit their work as it relates to the theme. The hope is that the installations will engender public dialogue and outrage. Tags and records in the diary will continue to accumulate. Calza is committed to undertaking this form of very public record keeping.
