HNH 2004: Identification Card

2004, inkjet on mylar, marker, laminated pouch

4-1/4 x 2-1/2 inches

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Whenever the self that is lost gets signed again, it is lost again. (EYAL AMIRAN)

In light of an election year, the 2004 Humanitarians Not Heroes project examines the blight on democracy that was the tail end of the last presidential race.

 

For the duration of the year, HNH will issue affiliate Identification Cards to any registering individuals over the age of 18 as of December 31, 2004. Each card carries a black and white image, a sequentially issued number, and that person's "authorized signature" on the backside. The general lack of personal information is a purposeful limit on basic data that reveals as much about one's identity as it retains. Moreover, in a subtle yet thwarting sleight-of-hand, like the dubious presidency that came to be, each signature is in fact an authentic forgery produced by a company "official."

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The card's design partially references the Palm Beach county butterfly ballot, symbolic of an inefficate, squeaky system in need of fine tuning. Its color bars signal Americana as much as take issue with the current administration's continual erosion of constitutional liberties brought on by 9-11 scapegoating and legislation, epitomized by the very McCarthyite Patriot Act.

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Cards are printed on clear mylar and laminated.