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Dave Cole

American Flag (Toy Soldiers #12), August 2002

Now On View

Description

Maker

Title

American Flag (Toy Soldiers #12)

Year

August 2002

Medium

Wood panel, plastic soldiers, and acrylic paint

Materials/Techniques

Materials

Dimensions

46 x 83.5 x 9.2 cm (18 1/8 x 32 7/8 x 3 5/8 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

Signed on back in marker

Type

Credit

Gift of Dr. Armand Versaci

Object Number

2003.119

Projects & Publications

Publications

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Former Glory

July 27, 2018 - January 20, 2019

In this piece, hundreds of green toy soldiers have been melted and painted in red, white, and blue acrylic. They homogenize so completely as to become the flag itself. After volunteering at Ground Zero, where the World Trade Center towers collapsed on 9/11, Providence sculptor Dave Cole began to create flag sculptures composed of plastic toy soldiers. Soldiers are equated with patriotism, and here the blended figurines recall ideas of collectivity prominent in nationalist rhetoric. The presence of “play” guns suggests the ongoing, devastating impact of American counterterrorism initiatives.

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in Copyright. This object is American Flag (Toy Soldiers #12) with the accession number of 2003.119. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.