"Prison Papers" is a series of drawings on found prison record forms, in which I am depicting weaponry from the world's arsenal of missiles and bombs. As I began this series in 2005, I became very intrigued with the idea of drawing within the context of the prison form’s tablature, which I found I could use to present the details about these weapons. I also became enamored with the cartoon-like nomenclature for these missiles like; Walleye, Bull Pup and Shillelagh and wanted to explore the immense contradiction this presented within the context of the hideous nature of these weapons. My intent is that these drawings, through their two-sided framing device, might free the viewer from certain notions of conformity and convention and through their content will suggest to the viewer that, to the extent that our economy depends on a vast infrastructure of military investment, the notion of security can be a form of imprisonment.



Kenny Cole September 2006