In one of the most intense drives to register voters ever, the 2020 election saw cities across the country push citizens to have their voices heard. Madison was no exception, as a number of artists lent their talents in order to encourage others to uphold their civic duties.
In October, University of Wisconsin Art Professor Henrique Nardi had his class design a series of non-partisan posters in order to encourage voting. These original pieces by UW students now hang along the State Street side of the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art.
“I’m always trying to find opportunities for students to have their work out in the world so that they can see the community’s reaction to their work,” Nardi said to cityofmadison.com. “The election period is such a crucial moment for that interaction to happen. Partnering with the MMoCA and MAC is really exciting for all the students involved.”
This new collaboration by Nardi is one of many community improvement projects he has worked on as of late as he also recently completed the Madison Mural located on Monroe Street with the help of local street artist Triangulador earlier in September.
New York-based artist Jenny Holzer also paid a trip to Madison in order to strike up the urge to vote. Holzer’s typical art style involves the use of screens, LED lights and billboards, and her trip to Madison was no exception as her art took the form of digital messages appearing on large screens attached to the sides of box trucks.
The messages on the trucks ranged from a variety of topics from “Vote hope,” to “Wisconsin shapes the future,” to “Vote for a functioning democracy.”
As another part of her YOUVOTE2020 project, Holzer commissioned a large street painting on the opposite side of the MMoCA building. The sign bore a quote from Sojourner Truth chosen by Holzer, but was painted by Nardi and a number of UW art students. The quote reads “Truth is powerful and will prevail,” along with information about where to register to vote.
“The selected quote by Sojourner Truth is particularly poignant and timely in relation to not only the election and raising awareness of social justice, but also Holzer’s own practice of reflecting on truth in her work,” MMoCA’s website states.
Holzer’s screens were not the only traveling pieces of art to visit the Madison area, as another piece of artwork made its way to Wisconsin to persuade citizens to vote in what proved to be a heavily-contested swing state. “Monument to the Unelected” by Nina Katchadourian is a collection of yard signs from failed presidential campaigns throughout history, including those of Hillary Clinton, George H.W. Bush and Theodore Roosevelt.
“Monument to the Unelected” was displayed at eight locations across the U.S., including New York, Arizona, Ohio and California.
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“That location has many people walking, riding and driving by,” Katchadourian said to Madison.com. “It’s a neighborhood in an urban environment where you might expect to see lawn signs, political signs on lawns. We like the element of surprise if they chose to look a little deeper.”
While the election has yet to be officially decided, citizens of Madison were hopefully persuaded to cast their ballots this year due to the high volume of art around the city.
