"Art is not made to decorate apartments. Art is an offensive and defensive weapon against the enemy."Pablo Picasso
The quote above, from one of the most legendary artists of all time. It's the first thing you see as you enter the website of California-based artist Scott Terry. It's a creed that Terry lives by.
Terry, who says he's in a new relationship, has no interest in getting married. "Other than when I thought I might marry a woman, it never occurred to me that I would get married," he stated in a phone interview with WCT.
And yet, marriage was very much on his mind when he created his eye-opening, simply titled Proposition 8 Project. Proposition 8 is, of course, the voter-approved amendment to the California State Constitution banning same-sex marriage.
"This art peace is comprised of 250 wooden blocks, some wrapped in Yes on 8 Propaganda and others wrapped in biblical text," explained the artist. "They are arranged in a chronological order and topographical order, beginning with a miniature Bible in the center and yellow blocks rising out of the chaos and winding their way through a sea of scripture."
Through photos on his website, ScottTerryProjects.com, as well as well as on a recently posted You Tube video, people can see some of the powerful images that Terry has created. "All homosexuals should be castrated" is a quote attributed to the Rev. Billy Graham. "Keep California White" was the disturbing campaign slogan used by US Senator James D. Phelan for his re-election campaign in 1920.
The Prop 8 piece also offers numerous amusing factoids, such as "Brigham Young had 56 wives, and "Britney Spears was married for 55 hours, just for fun."
The piece has not altered Terry's personal decision on his own marital status. "I've not changed my views," he said. "I made the piece due to my extreme disgust with what people do with religion. When you come from a fundamentalist upbringing, the Bible is used for so many abuses in the world. It's patently unfair for people to take their religion and apply it to others."
Reactions to the piece have been mixed, including from within the LGBT community. The Prop 8 piece was included in an art show at San Francisco's GLBT Community Center, where Terry met with unexpected censorship. "They were afraid that religious members of the center would be offended, so they put me on the third floor, and didn't include me in the press releases. No one saw it there," he said.
Things went better for the piece in the state Capitol. "I love watching people's reactions," Terry said. "At Sacramento (Calif.) Pride, people thought it was an anti-gay piece. You could watch the wheels turning in their heads. It took them a few minutes to realize what the piece is really about. I wish the people who need to see it would, but they don't."
The artist was raised by people who might most need to see his Prop 8 piece. He's a contributor to Freeminds.org, a website for ex-Jehovah's Witnesses. He's also writing a book about his early years. The yet to be titled tome is scheduled to be published in September 2012.
"I had the kind of life that people write books about," Terry said with a laugh. "The book is about growing up as a gay cowboy/bull rider/Jehovah's Witness. I have lots of crazy stories to share."
Currently, his Prop 8 piece is sitting in his garage, waiting to see the light of day again, which is why he produced the You Tube video. "I got a buzz to show it again," he said.
Terry continues to dedicate his life to creating art. His website has a section devoted to his exquisite watercolors. There's no doubt that he'll be making additional statements about religion in the future.
"I don't have a problem with people practicing their belief," he concluded. "Just don't encode them in the constitution."
Visit www.ScottTerryProjects.com .