Answer: D: Dr. Martin Luther King.
Explanation: Edgar Arceneaux is an American artist who works with various media, such as painting, sculpture, film, and installation One of his projects is called “A Book and a Medal”, which he started in 2014 This project is inspired by the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who was a civil rights leader and a Nobel Peace Prize laureate Arceneaux wanted to explore how King’s vision of social justice and nonviolence was challenged by the political and economic forces of his time, especially by J. Edgar Hoover, who was the director of the FBI and who tried to discredit and intimidate King.
One of the most shocking episodes of this conflict was when Hoover sent King a package that contained a book with recordings of King’s alleged affairs and a letter that suggested that King should end his own life. Arceneaux uses this book and King’s medal as symbols of the contrast between King’s public image and his private struggles. He also uses them as metaphors for the transformation of objects into things, which he defines as “objects that have been stripped of their original meaning and purpose”. Arceneaux creates abstract paintings and sculptures that resemble these objects, but he distorts them with geometric shapes, mirrored surfaces, and fragmented texts. He also makes references to other historical events and figures that are connected to King’s story, such as the Vietnam War, Malcolm X, James Earl Ray, Star Trek, and Detroit
Arceneaux’s project is not only about the past, but also about the present and the future. He wants to show how history is not linear or fixed, but rather complex and ambiguous. He also wants to question how media and technology influence our perception of reality and our ability to create social change. He uses film as a medium to create a nonlinear narrative that mixes fiction and documentary, and invites the viewers to participate in the construction of meaning. He also uses installation as a medium to create an immersive environment that challenges the viewers’ sense of space and time. Arceneaux’s project is a creative and critical way of engaging with history, memory, and identity in the context of contemporary America.
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