To show my appreciation, I've decided to do a theoretical dissection of the above picture:
To begin with, the details. An arm decorated in cloth, felt and plastics is made out to represent a goose. It perches over an image of dance/exercise guru Richard Simmons. Overlaying is the text "Silly Goose Award".
Most immediately noticeable is the overt dissassociation from any sort of rational scale.. the puppeteer's arm dwarf's the image of Richard Simmons, who, while not a large man by any stretch of the imagination, has clearly been resized, or perhaps "reduced" in the presentation. But for what purpose? One might theorize that the artist is ridiculing Simmons' role in our society, or that the goose is meant to be a menacing figure, a metaphor for some more tangible real-world threat, and Simmons' reduced size amplifies his vulnerability.. and consequently our own.
I would suggest, however, that to fully translate this work one must focus on the notion of the bizzare and non-sensical. The text "Silly Goose Award" is the crux on which the entire piece swings; the very notion that one could be rewarded for behaving in a "silly" manner is in itself ludicrous. The ridicule inherent in this paradox speaks to the undercurrent of the bizzare which runs through our society at large. Simmons' reduced size is merely a confirming nod to this undercurrent, in which any sense of "scale" or "reality" is smashed to pieces.
So in conclusion, is that guy gay, or what?
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