Jesse Ash works on the connecting lines of political speech and imagery. For the exhibition Beyond Words at the GAK he translated, for example, Tony Blair’s political lie in 2002 that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction which could be activated within 45 minutes, into a multi-coloured tent-like sculpture.
His annual edition consists of three frames, each of which contains three drawings on transparent paper which overlap. These are sketches for a new project – hybrids of stand-alone sculptures and projection backgrounds for a film. Their form, and therefore that of the drawings, is derived from contemporary drafts for speakers’ podiums. Architectural drafts, therefore, which are intended to support the particular atmosphere of the language used: hierarchy and unassailability or openness and transparency. This, coupled with the translucent paper of the individual sheets, provides a critical commentary on the actual transparency and truth content of political speeches.