your authority is not ....

I've written in a few posts in some of the TSA forums about how we all need to take action and that the best way to do that is with the skills we each uniquely possess. One of my joys in life is making books, whether those be books of french surrealist poetry or artist books involving my own poetry and oil pastel work. This is a set of 3 volumes I've recently finished, entitled Your Authority Is Not... using a song by Tobias Lilja called "My Authority", which you can listen to over here on his myspace page. Its a beautifully haunting song and one I believe puts forth a strong message about authority and its abuseness. For me the song is divided into 2 sections. The first is the voice of those in authority, the second, those yearning to fight that authority.

The lyrics are as follows:

My Authority

show me
show me
show me
show me
i am misleading my army
i am making holes in the walls
to let in spies
and i am sending your sons and daughters
out on crusades on false grounds
i am pointing my guns
in the wrong direction
locking up my allies
locking up

and i am welcoming the mutiny
with open arms, with open arms
everything... just to see the world again
just to see the world again
and i'd do anything,
i'd do anything, anything,
just show me
show me

I chose to build 3 books interpreting this song in different ways. The text in the first volume fades in and out in strength equal to the oppression presented by that text. The 2nd volume highlights the letters T S and A throughout the text in red, speaking to the fact the TSA these days seems to be everywhere, trying to control us and keeping us from our 4th amendment rights. The 3rd volume rescripts the song lyrics, creating a new message from the text as follows:

"My, how I am misleading your sons and daughters on false grounds. It is wrong, everything, TSA, HS, me me me me..."

I will be displaying these books as part of my gallery show in May. Take action, take a stand, use your abilities and beliefs and fight for you, your children and your families.