In 2001, a few weeks after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the Whitney Museum of American Art, which was holding its Biennial exhibition of contemporary and cutting edge art, got a phone call from an unlikely source. An FBI agent was interested in a drawing in the exhibition by the late conceptual artist Mark Lombardi, who had committed suicide the year before. The agent asked to see the drawing, and to obtain a copy of it for the investigation into the attacks. The work, an intricate pencil drawing on a huge sheet of paper that looked more like a constellation map of the universe than a flow chart, explored the links between global banking and international terrorism, and included specific reference to the Bank of Commerce and Credit International (BCCI), a global bank whose former director was Osama Bin Laden’s brother-in-law.
Lombardi’s many other drawings also mapped the economic underpinnings of our global society. and show the intricate web of connections that lie beneath political and financial scandals. The works are visual narratives of the way money flows in the global economy: from corporations to political organizations, from individuals to various ad hoc groups, most of them acting outside of national boundaries—and often outside the law. The drawings are all based on information gathered from newspaper, television, and other sources in the public domain, and organized by Lombardi into a handwritten database of over 14,000 index cards.
(Click on any image in the post to enlarge in a new window)
The following is from the artist’s own statement about his work:
“In 1994 I began a series of drawings I refer to as “narrative structures.” Most were executed in graphite or pen and ink on paper. Some are quite large, measuring up to 5 x 12 feet. I call them “narrative structures” because each consists of a network of lines and notations which are meant to convey a story, typically about a recent event of interest to me, like the collapse of a large international bank, trading company, or investment house. One of my goals is to explore the interaction of political, social and economic forces in contemporary affairs. Thus far I have exhibited drawings on BCCI, Lincoln Savings, World Finance of Miami, the Vatican Bank, Silverado Savings, Castle Bank and Trust of the Bahamas, Nugan Hand Limited of Sydney, Australia, and many more. Working from syndicated news items and other published accounts, I begin each drawing by compiling large amounts of information about a specific bank, financial group or set of individuals. After a careful review of the literature I then condense the essential points into an assortment of notations and other brief statements of fact, out of which an image begins to emerge. My purpose throughout is to interpret the material by juxtaposing and assembling the notations into a unified, coherent whole. In some cases I use a set of stacked, parallel lines to establish a time frame. Hierarchical relationships, the flow of money and other key details are then indicated by a system of radiating arrows, broken lines and so forth. Some of the drawings consist of two different layers of information—one denoted in black, the other, red. Black represents the essential elements of the story while the major lawsuits, criminal indictments or other legal actions taken against the parties are shown in red. Every statement of fact and connection depicted in the work is true and based on information culled entirely from the public record.”
– Mark Lombardi
After listening to the 5 minute NPR podcast linked below, and viewing and thinking about the work, you may address any of the following questions in a brief 100 or so word blog post response. To you, how does this work operate metaphorically? How does what it looks like or its composition suggest to you about political “truth” or how we receive information? Does the work stand alone as artwork, and why or why not?
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1487185
Sound Stage, and Surface 