Proliferation

Year completed 2009 Medium Video/Audio/Animation Dimensions 11:30 Projected or Large Monitor

Art can tell stories. For years I would talk about injustice by reciting numbers and statistics. When you say, “We have over 2.3 million people in prison,” it’s a large number to comprehend. Doing research at a prison issues-themed residency at the Blue Mountain Center in New York, I found some maps that I felt could help tell the story. This project shows the proliferation of the US prison system if seen from a celestial point of view. Using different colors to indicate different eras, the viewer can clearly see the astonishing growth of this system over time.

If you would like to receive a free copy of the Proliferation DVD, email your name and address to {encode="paulrucker@gmail.com" title="paulrucker@gmail.com"}.

Timeline: Green Dots: 1778-1900 Yellow Dots: 1901-1940 Orange Dots: 1941-1980 Red Dots: 1981-2005

Credits: Paul Rucker - Concept, Music Composition and Performance Nathan Eyring - Animation? Aaron Bourget- Video Editing? Rose Heyer - Research? Troy Glessner - Music Mastering

Screenings: Monroe Correctional Complex – Monroe, WA – Screening / Live Performance, 2011 Vermillion Gallery – Seattle, WA – 2011 Alcatraz – San Francisco, CA – Video Screenings and Live Performance, 2011 Nova School – Seattle, WA, 2010 The Stone – New York, NY – DVD Release, 2010 Cornish College of Art – Seattle, WA, 2009

Posters:

Special Thanks: Blue Mountain Center - Prison Issues Residency • Fellow Activists of the Prison Issues Residency • Peter Wagner • Prison Policy Initiative • Prisoners of the Census • Washington State Arts Commission/Artist Trust Fellowship • Cornish College of the Arts Jess Van Nostrand