Truman Marquez, Severed Voting Fingers Cast a Shadow over Doubt

Utilizing symbol and shadow, the artist alludes to one potential outcome of the Iraq war. The purple tipped fingers are a clear reference to Iraqi voting practices yet, in this piece the woman dressed in a black burka is using a pair of scissors to auto-amputate her own finger, implying that the Iraqi people are responsible for their own chances for implementing a democracy. Again, the artist employs the technique of placing floating objects (severed fingers) in a gravity-less world. He is also hiding loaded iconic imagery within shadows. The floating fingers cast a shadow on the blood red floor. In these shadows the viewer will find the dead body of a U.S. service man along with his rifle and helmet.