For the first U.S. presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden on September 29, the Cleveland Artists United for Change political action committee wanted to be sure its poster campaign was up and running After about seven months Inception, the series urges Americans from five battlefield states of Ohio, Arizona, Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania to « Remember What They Did » and #VoteThemOut in November
On the eve of the debate, which was held at Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland Clinic, nine billboards as well as hundreds of posters were up across town “We made it happen. ‘route from Hopkins Airport to downtown (I-71) as well as strategically around the debate site, ”says artist and organizer Scott Goldstein, who founded the group with Robin Bell Jeff Rusnak, a political strategist longtime, correctly guessed where the closed roads might be, and bought several billboards along the route where traffic was diverted, assuring Trump and his entourage would pass by the signs
In Cleveland, large-scale works by artists Claudio Martinez, Shepard Fairey, Nate Lewis and Justin Hampton have been linked to verified quotes on immigration, coronavirus and police brutality made by President Trump « We recall voters for the harm Donald Trump has caused the Buckeye State by his words and actions, ”says Rusnak Works by artists Nekisha Durrett, Rafael Lopez, Robert Russell, Rob Sheridan and Swoon (Caledonia Curry) will appear in others States
New York artist Nate Lewis, a former nurse who worked in a hospital intensive care unit for nine years, chose to create a boldly patterned piece around the phrase ‘Disappearances, I hope ”- one of the US president’s cavalier remarks on the coronavirus at the start of the pandemic“ It’s near the medical center, ”said Bell, adding that the organizers have been working with artists to find the best way to place their images in public spaces “Nate works with perforated paper, so his design incorporated that Bell, who had only seen the work on a video screen, was finally able to see the billboard in all its 14ft by 48ft glory as he was in Cleveland plastering posters and performing protest screenings during « It really held up » debate
There are 40 billboards in total among the five states that plan to keep them and add more until the November election However, not all of the artists’ works have been accepted by the advertising agencies that manage the billboards in every city. For example, Swoon, who chose to describe Trump’s use of force against Black Lives Matter protesters was only placed in Michigan – and getting two billboards with his work up there was a challenge Rusnak, who traded with the billboard brokers, learned that his play, A Beautiful Picture, showing protesters pushed into the void by heavily armored police, did not match the quote
« We are really trying to motivate people to vote, » said Bell, who added that most of the billboards were placed in neighborhoods and not along highways. « We lost by such a small margin the last time «
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Cleveland, debate, Joe Biden, US presidential debates
News from around the world – UK – Billboards by anti-Trump artists greet presidential candidates in Cleveland
SOURCE: https://www.w24news.com