Sculptures like the one above are appearing in 10 Congressional districts to inform voters of the horrors that children face from school shootings, the dangers posed by 3D printable guns, and the importance of voting for candidates who support gun safety legislation.
In Sioux Falls, SD, the Argus Leader reports:
The small girl cowers beneath an open school desk, clutching a leg as she gazes into the distance with a look of fear in her eyes. The scene appears in sculptures produced with the help of Manuel Oliver, an artist who lost his 17-year-old son in the Parkland, Florida, mass shooting earlier this year.
Actual desks make up part of sculptures, Chicago's WSL-TV reported, with the cowering girl produced from 3D printing — an intentional nod to the controversial rise of print-at-home guns.
"We want you to feel unsettled," Sean Leonard, an advertising professional who worked with Oliver on the project, told WSL-TV.
One of the statues will be placed at an event (Bay View Street Bash) in Milwaukee according to the Chicago ABC station. The article includes a video that I can’t embed.
The statue in Spokane, WA appears at the Shadle/Spokane Public Library. Brooke Bennett, a high school student, spoke poignantly:
“It’s a chilling pop-up art installation,” said Lakeside High School senior Brooke Bennett, who hosted the Spokane unveiling.
[…] Bennett, who helped organize a walkout at her school as part of a nationwide action to protest school shootings this year, said the image the statue represents – one snapshot from a classroom under school lockdown – is something she never wants to see brought to life.
“I don’t want to have to practice stacking chairs up against a door,” she said.
Several gun safety advocates including Giffords supported the project:
Driven by the need to speak up and demand action to address gun violence in the wake of recent mass shootings, Daniel Crumrine and Sean Leonard, two advertising creative directors based in Texas, volunteered to design a life-size statue of a child hiding under a school desk during a lockdown procedure, with the goal of forcing people to face the reality of the toll gun violence exacts in America. In collaboration with Parkland-based artist and activist Manuel Oliver, and Giffords, the gun safety organization launched by former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and her husband Astronaut Captain Mark Kelly, the Texas ad veterans created The Last Lockdown Statue.
[…] Once the statue’s design was finalized, student activists from across the nation volunteered to organize events, creating opportunities for the statue to visit their community and spark a conversation about the reality of gun violence and its impact on the youngest generation. Etched on top of the statue’s desk is a collection of stats about the impact of gun violence on children, including the fact that every day 22 children in America are shot with a gun. The desk also includes a text chain, prompting those who visit the statue to register to vote. Many of the student organizers are pairing their statue events with voter registration drives, driving home the importance of turning outrage into action and electing leaders determined to fight for safer gun laws.
[…] Even the method used to create the statue, 3D printing, will remind Americans of the debate we’re having around guns in America. Recently, the Trump administration sparked national outrage around a ruling that would have allowed anyone to 3D print their own guns, including people unable to pass a background check, like terrorists, convicted felons, and domestic abusers.
The statues will appear in the following districts:
- Parkland, Florida (FL-22)
- Las Vegas, Nevada (NV-03) — Center for Social Justice on the UNLV campus
- Denver, Colorado (CO-6)
- Minneapolis, Minnesota (MN-03)
- Irvine, California (CA-45) — the office of Congresswoman Mimi Walters
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin (WI-01) — Bay View Street Bash
- Houston, Texas (TX-07) — in front of Houston City Hall
- Sarasota, Florida (FL-16)
- Spokane, Washington (WA-05) — Shadle/Spokane Public Library
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (PA-05 + PA-06) — Philadelphia Museum of Art
If you live near one of these districts, hit the Giffords link above to find out specific location and other info. Then gather all your anti-gun safety family and colleagues and take them to see some “unique artwork” 😈