The JFK Fluxus Box
JFK by Oliver Stone
The box is 12 inches long and 10 inches in width. Made of wood and nails, it was topped off with three different components of spray paint and a lock to add to its authenticity.
I wanted to depict a box that embodies injustice and corruption. A box that would represent truth. A box that would outrage the public. In the film JFK, by Oliver Stone, he emphasizes how the actors and plot were suppose to be almost identical to the actual events that happened in real life. His characters were played by iconic actors and actresses. In fact, Jim Garrison, the district Attorney of new Orleans in the 1960's played Earl Warren(a supreme court justice jurist a.k.a the man who led the Warren Commission in court) in the movie JFK. He played this role to be ironic. Garrison is the only person who has ever brought a public prosecution of the Kennedy case to light, to this date. He went against Clay Shaw in court (clay Shaw was confirmed by Richard Helms(directer of covert operations in the 60's) that he worked for the CIA). The movie JFK was also based on Jim Garrisons books "On The Trail Of The Assassins" and "Crossfire: The Plot That Killed Kennedy" by Jim Marrs. The box I created, is suppose to represent the JFK files that are locked away in the National Archives. I wanted to represent this by presenting the objects in a filing cabinet drawer. Written on the box, are the words, top secret and confidential, to add to the attraction of the case. The box is sectioned into two departments. The top half holds the "files". These files are represented by a packet I printed, that I sharpied over. This is supposed to represent how the real files were not suppose to be released until 2029, originally. These files are still not supposed to be released. If they do, the information will most likely be covered up. The files were not released because of "national security". In other words, the files were not released because, we the people, cannot handle the images for they are too graphic. This is used as an excuse, so the public cannot see the files.
The bottom half of the box, holds the rest of the objects. Each object is bagged as though they are objects from a crime scene. They are labeled as a type of evidence from the case. There are gloves in the box, to add to the crime scene theme, as well. One object titled, The Warren Commission Evidence, represents The Warren Commission, a group established by Lyndon B. Johnson to investigate the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. The ball of rubber bands, represents the Warren Commission group, for they were known, by many researchers, for stretching out lies, until they snapped.They also had layers of lies. This is much like how rubber bands work on there own, when they are stretched out. The group also took their "evidence" and went in circles with it. They never came to a conclusion that fit with any real evidence of what happened. That is why a ball(of rubber bands), because of its shape , suits the Warren Commission so nicely. The lies built up and were layered. The warren commission was known for calling Lee Harvey Oswald, the apparent Marxist communist and assassin of JFK, a "lone Nut". That is why another object I made, was a nut I painted red for communism. The object was titled, The "lone nut". I put this piece in quotation marks to represent how dysfunctional that theory is. I wanted to use this because the piece is a metaphor and it makes the viewer question, 'what kind of nutty ideas could this box be about?!?!
Another piece was titled, The Ballistic Evidence. This object was a silhouette of JFK's head. Two wood panels were placed in the same vicinity, joined together with tape. The inside of the piece was empty on the inside of the silhoutte of JFK because this is supposed to represent how during the case the presidents brain was "lost". The evidence was exposed of, just as the limousine was cleaned immediately after the assassination. The black color represents the death of JFK. Instead of having bullets, there are holes placed all over the silhouette. This coincides with how there had to of been more then one gun men and if the bullets came from behind from the grassy knoll, this would disclaim the warren commissions theory. The bullet that was planted next to Kennedy on a stretcher at parkland hospital was found in nearly pristine condition, after it apparently fell out of Connally's left thigh. The real bullets would not be found in any such condition. This represents the fact that there was more then one gun men. This defeats the warren commissions claims of there being a lone nut, and instills evidence that Lee Harvey Oswald was a Patsy(he was framed). Lee Harvey Oswald had CIA clearance and did not get a right to an attorney when he was imprisoned. This also coincides with how the Warren Commission tried to prove that there was one gunmen with their evidence of the , magic bullet theory. The magic bullet theory was a theory that tried to prove that one bullet could zigzag through Kennedy's body, zigzagging and waiting in mid-air, reaching Connally, eventually making a dramatic u-turn into his left thigh. Another object is titled, The Jim Garrison evidence. This object was a blue glitter ball inside a clear box. This was important for it represents evidence the public can feast their eyes upon. The blue color represents the truth. The glitter is hard to shake off. This deals with how we cannot always shake the truth once we know it. The clear box represents how the truth is transparent when one researches into it. The last object was the Circumstantial Evidence. I refer to this object as the web of lies. The string represents all of the points in the case that tie together. Each witness and evidence provided in the case links to another. Facts that do not add up, such as how Allen Dulles, a man who was fired by Kennedy, was appointed by Lyndon B. Johnson to investigate Kennedy's assassination, to be on the panel of the Warren Commission. Other facts, as the woman like, Jack Ruby's(the mobster who shot Lee Harvey Oswald) employee, Rose Cheramie, who spoke of Kennedy's assassination before it happened. She was killed because of her claims, in 1965. These and countless other facts allow one to put the pieces together. Once they learn certain truths are evident. This works just as the web does, slowly learning of such facts that one makes connections of what they learn and are trapped in a metaphorical web of lies. (when they realize all of the corruption spun out onto the American public). All these objects are placed together in the same vicinity, but separately in there own bags. This suits the case nicely because the objects are interconnected but need to be viewed one at a time, in order to process all of the facts involved in the case. The box is rust like, because it has been locked away since 1963.
In order for one to understand why the box matters and why it was made, It is best to have the viewers keep in mind that when viewing the case, as of viewing the box, one should look past asking how and who could of been involved. They are mere questions meant as scenery for the public to distract them from what is really important. If one is able to crack the box, and know what movie it depicts, they should be able to wonder about challenging questions, as to why? Why was Kennedy Killed? Who had the power to cover up the case? And who benefited?
In Progress Photos
Finished Box Inside and Out
Objects
The box is 12 inches long and 10 inches in width. Made of wood and nails, it was topped off with three different components of spray paint and a lock to add to its authenticity.
I wanted to depict a box that embodies injustice and corruption. A box that would represent truth. A box that would outrage the public. In the film JFK, by Oliver Stone, he emphasizes how the actors and plot were suppose to be almost identical to the actual events that happened in real life. His characters were played by iconic actors and actresses. In fact, Jim Garrison, the district Attorney of new Orleans in the 1960's played Earl Warren(a supreme court justice jurist a.k.a the man who led the Warren Commission in court) in the movie JFK. He played this role to be ironic. Garrison is the only person who has ever brought a public prosecution of the Kennedy case to light, to this date. He went against Clay Shaw in court (clay Shaw was confirmed by Richard Helms(directer of covert operations in the 60's) that he worked for the CIA). The movie JFK was also based on Jim Garrisons books "On The Trail Of The Assassins" and "Crossfire: The Plot That Killed Kennedy" by Jim Marrs. The box I created, is suppose to represent the JFK files that are locked away in the National Archives. I wanted to represent this by presenting the objects in a filing cabinet drawer. Written on the box, are the words, top secret and confidential, to add to the attraction of the case. The box is sectioned into two departments. The top half holds the "files". These files are represented by a packet I printed, that I sharpied over. This is supposed to represent how the real files were not suppose to be released until 2029, originally. These files are still not supposed to be released. If they do, the information will most likely be covered up. The files were not released because of "national security". In other words, the files were not released because, we the people, cannot handle the images for they are too graphic. This is used as an excuse, so the public cannot see the files.
The bottom half of the box, holds the rest of the objects. Each object is bagged as though they are objects from a crime scene. They are labeled as a type of evidence from the case. There are gloves in the box, to add to the crime scene theme, as well. One object titled, The Warren Commission Evidence, represents The Warren Commission, a group established by Lyndon B. Johnson to investigate the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. The ball of rubber bands, represents the Warren Commission group, for they were known, by many researchers, for stretching out lies, until they snapped.They also had layers of lies. This is much like how rubber bands work on there own, when they are stretched out. The group also took their "evidence" and went in circles with it. They never came to a conclusion that fit with any real evidence of what happened. That is why a ball(of rubber bands), because of its shape , suits the Warren Commission so nicely. The lies built up and were layered. The warren commission was known for calling Lee Harvey Oswald, the apparent Marxist communist and assassin of JFK, a "lone Nut". That is why another object I made, was a nut I painted red for communism. The object was titled, The "lone nut". I put this piece in quotation marks to represent how dysfunctional that theory is. I wanted to use this because the piece is a metaphor and it makes the viewer question, 'what kind of nutty ideas could this box be about?!?!
Another piece was titled, The Ballistic Evidence. This object was a silhouette of JFK's head. Two wood panels were placed in the same vicinity, joined together with tape. The inside of the piece was empty on the inside of the silhoutte of JFK because this is supposed to represent how during the case the presidents brain was "lost". The evidence was exposed of, just as the limousine was cleaned immediately after the assassination. The black color represents the death of JFK. Instead of having bullets, there are holes placed all over the silhouette. This coincides with how there had to of been more then one gun men and if the bullets came from behind from the grassy knoll, this would disclaim the warren commissions theory. The bullet that was planted next to Kennedy on a stretcher at parkland hospital was found in nearly pristine condition, after it apparently fell out of Connally's left thigh. The real bullets would not be found in any such condition. This represents the fact that there was more then one gun men. This defeats the warren commissions claims of there being a lone nut, and instills evidence that Lee Harvey Oswald was a Patsy(he was framed). Lee Harvey Oswald had CIA clearance and did not get a right to an attorney when he was imprisoned. This also coincides with how the Warren Commission tried to prove that there was one gunmen with their evidence of the , magic bullet theory. The magic bullet theory was a theory that tried to prove that one bullet could zigzag through Kennedy's body, zigzagging and waiting in mid-air, reaching Connally, eventually making a dramatic u-turn into his left thigh. Another object is titled, The Jim Garrison evidence. This object was a blue glitter ball inside a clear box. This was important for it represents evidence the public can feast their eyes upon. The blue color represents the truth. The glitter is hard to shake off. This deals with how we cannot always shake the truth once we know it. The clear box represents how the truth is transparent when one researches into it. The last object was the Circumstantial Evidence. I refer to this object as the web of lies. The string represents all of the points in the case that tie together. Each witness and evidence provided in the case links to another. Facts that do not add up, such as how Allen Dulles, a man who was fired by Kennedy, was appointed by Lyndon B. Johnson to investigate Kennedy's assassination, to be on the panel of the Warren Commission. Other facts, as the woman like, Jack Ruby's(the mobster who shot Lee Harvey Oswald) employee, Rose Cheramie, who spoke of Kennedy's assassination before it happened. She was killed because of her claims, in 1965. These and countless other facts allow one to put the pieces together. Once they learn certain truths are evident. This works just as the web does, slowly learning of such facts that one makes connections of what they learn and are trapped in a metaphorical web of lies. (when they realize all of the corruption spun out onto the American public). All these objects are placed together in the same vicinity, but separately in there own bags. This suits the case nicely because the objects are interconnected but need to be viewed one at a time, in order to process all of the facts involved in the case. The box is rust like, because it has been locked away since 1963.
In order for one to understand why the box matters and why it was made, It is best to have the viewers keep in mind that when viewing the case, as of viewing the box, one should look past asking how and who could of been involved. They are mere questions meant as scenery for the public to distract them from what is really important. If one is able to crack the box, and know what movie it depicts, they should be able to wonder about challenging questions, as to why? Why was Kennedy Killed? Who had the power to cover up the case? And who benefited?
In Progress Photos
Finished Box Inside and Out
Objects
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