Everyone can calm down now. We have found the art that Occupy Wall street has been waiting for. The protest joining the young together has finally (inadvertently) found its source of artistic inspiration. Who is this Muse? None other than the man Shawn Corey Carter, AKA Jay-Z.
Daniel Edwards has recently revealed a sculpture that is causing quite some controversy with the music mogul. The statue, pictured above, depicts Jaz-Z as the base of many other smaller (fictional) figures, such as Scrooge McDuck, stacked above him. This sculpture is meant to depict Jay-Z as one who is only looking out for himself and his pocket. This art piece is in response to Jay-Z attempt at making a quick buck by selling t-shirts with the words “Occupy All Streets” for a whopping $22-with no benefits going towards the Occupy Wall Street movement.
The statue is a critique of Jay-Z as usually a man who likes to think of himself as someone from the block, as the average Joe.; instead of helping the average Joe, Jay-Z decided instead to sell a product and take advantage of the movement that is looking out for the public rather than one’s private bank account.
One could take the side that these shirts are helping promote the cause, so it can’t be so bad. What do you think?
Although this sculpture may not be “Born In the USA” we have finally seen some sort of effect that Occupy Wall Street had on the arts. The arts have done its job by protecting the people and their integrity for what they stand for. They aren’t the 1% that could afford a $22 t-shirt, but if that same shirt was selling for $4.99 at Target, with Jay-Z still receiving the profit, would there still have been an outcry?
There are two sides to looking at this situation. One as you mentioned it does promote the cause because it spreads the word of the Occupy Wall Street Movement. However, the commercialization of it may simply detract from the impact and true meaning. People may start to roll their eyes at the hypocrisy that such celebrities create. Why act like you are part of the 99%, when you are obviously part of the 1%?A similar problem (that was mentioned in a different classmates blog post) arises when police officers are forced to decide. On one hand, they are part of the 99% but on the other hand, they have a job to do and therefore they cannot be a part of the protesting side. Making such a choice is complicated just like the distribution of wealth in America is.