Mickey Johnston, born Neptune, NJ 1949 Search this
Medium:
hand-forged steel, gold, diamonds, and pearl
Dimensions:
3 3/4 x 4 3/4 x 5/8 in. (9.6 x 12.1 x 1.6 cm.)
Type:
Decorative Arts-Jewelry
Crafts
Date:
1997
Luce Center Label:
This bracelet was created for an exhibition in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, called Artists of a Different Caliber. Twenty artists were each given a gun by the Pittsburgh Police Department and asked to create a piece that spoke against random gun violence. Many of the artists chose to create small sculptures with disturbing messages, but Mickey Johnston was determined to make a piece that he thought beautiful. He says, “I concentrated on turning a sword into a plowshare.” From the barrel of a .22 caliber pistol, a so-called Saturday night special, he forged a bracelet with five dangling charms. The gold, diamonds, and pearls applied to the revolver bridge the distance between the beauty of “art” and the realities of “life.”
Credit Line:
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist in honor of Professor Robert Ebendorf
