Not a Drill

“Not a Drill” explores our increased exposure to gun violence and the alarming lack of measurable gun reform in the United States. As of August 2023, according to The Gun Violence Archive, there have been 4,046 children and teens killed by gunfire in just 221 days as compared to 2,821 victims total in 2014 when the archive was established. It is obvious that the agencies and systems meant to protect us are failing. As an artist and mother of two school-aged children, I feel compelled to respond to these atrocities and lack of action because gun violence devastates all people at personal, community, state, and national levels.

My project is attuned to focus on K-12 shootings, as well as the larger social issue regarding increased gun violence. Using every-day, child-centered materials such as paper, ink, felt, blankets, and plastic, paired with art-texts that read like headlines or protest slogans, I open up visceral conversations about the fragility of life. In doing so, I arm individuals and communities with resources, solidarity, and a voice, rather than weapons.

“Not a Drill” includes community involvement with the schools devastated by the 2022 shooting in Uvalde, Texas at Robb Elementary and the 2018 shooting in Santa Fe, Texas at Santa Fe High School. Since 2022, I have been fostering relationships with Santa Fe Ten Memorial and LivesRobbed to witness and understand the full impact of these massacres and the role of art to help communities process grief, establish connection, and enact change. I will continue to work with these nonprofits and others to research and develop the various bodies of work within this larger project.

Iconographically, the work appropriates the American flag and that image continues to naturally deepen and evolve as I install or employ it over time. For example, “Flesh and Blood,” pictures my elementary-aged children wrapped in the American flag printed on mylar emergency blankets. These thin blankets suggest the frailty and instability currently found in school protection and asks, “Who will protect America’s children?” Additionally, “Warning: Does Not Protect Against Gunfire” is a public flag folding ceremony, a gesture and ritual typically reserved for military funerals. Each folded flag is the same mylar emergency blanket sealed with the warning label, “Warning: Does not protect against gunfire." The flags remain after the performance, which are then displayed in various configurations or sites, taking on different meanings.

Creating works which place the body as a central focus is of importance at this stage of the project. My recent performance “Thoughts and Prayers,” documents through photography my body as it is repeatedly struck and engulfed by emergency blankets/flags. This fight has an impact not only on survivors and their families, but also on advocates and the larger affected communities. Advocates see both themselves and the victims in the torn and battered flags.

A portion of “Not a Drill” references the language used in K-12 school lockdown procedures. I use black paper inked in silver with the words “This is a Drill,” and then repeated “Not a Drill.” In “Measured Inaction,” arrows are screen-printed onto felt, delineating the movements of shooters and police at recent gun massacres. Jenny Holzer’s “Vigil," 2019 and “IT IS GUNS,” 2018 has been an inspiration for these text pieces. I aim to continue to create new text-image pieces as silkscreens, prints, and installations that speak to the story of gun violence in America.

“New Spelling,” a recent video of my two children begins with familiar words such as vote and flag, but quickly progresses into terms such as legislation, amendment and semi-automatic. The oral spelling test ends with my son reciting and my daughter spelling the names of K-12 massacres.

In researching the topic of gun violence, I have participated in rallies at the state capital, and marched with advocates, survivors and families. I have recently become a Moms Demand Action volunteer. My largest outdoor public installation, “Vigil for the 21,” uses the emergency blanket/ flag, and was exhibited at Canopy Projects in Austin, Texas on the one-year-anniversary of the Uvalde shooting. This work uses screen printed emergency blankets as a material and metaphor.

Since my initial impulse to make this work, I have realized that it is positioned within a larger conversation that is in one respect well established and the other only minimally explored. The politicized body as a site for art is long documented, yet the space inviting and inspired by children is not.

“Not a Drill'' enhances the visibility of contemporary feminist positions addressing the intersections of motherhood and socially engaged art. Choosing to incorporate my children into this work was a deliberate choice on all our parts. My children understand the significance of their participation and are aware of the gun related tragedies unfolding in Texas and around the nation. “Not a Drill'' emphasizes the blurring of the private and public spheres and humanizes the overwhelming gun violence data by directly featuring children in the work. Domestic life and political life are now intertwined.

“Not a Drill” is a living, breathing contemporary memorial dedicated to all gun violence victims, survivors, and their families. Through an interdisciplinary approach and focus on accessible materials and language, my goal with this project is to invite diverse audiences to participate in collective mourning and healing, to organize conversations and education on gun safety protocols, and facilitate awareness and opportunities for civic engagement.