All Is Calm At Bush Mug Shot Exhibit

Who loves an art controversy? I sure do. So on my lunch break I wandered up to the third floor of the New York Public Library to check out "Multiple Interpretations," an exhibition of prints and photographs that has ruffled some feathers.

What's getting attention is a 2006 series called "Line Up" by artists Nora Ligorano and Marshall Reese. The work presents photos of members of the Bush administration as police mug shots. Nearby, a kiosk plays recordings of politicians making various incriminating statements about the war on terror. The message, delivered with all the subtlety of a bumper sticker on a Prius, is that the Bush administration is a bunch of crooks.

The exhibition has been up since Oct. 26 and drew little notice until a Daily News story yesterday about how some Bush supporters were offended. Some think the library should install a similar rogues gallery of Democrats. TV news picked up the story in short order. It's a familiar New York City formula: Art + Politics + Use of Public Resources = Combustion.

An impressive number of people were wandering by this exhibition today (it's near the restrooms) but nobody seemed especially enraged. I spent a few minutes pondering where the artists got the photos (they're actually pretty convincing mug shots), before checking out the rest of the exhibition, which is worth a look. My verdict: Much ado about nothing. But if this silly controversy draws people into the library to look at and talk about art, I say bring it on.