An 18-foot-long rhinestone-covered replica of a U.S. Predator drone was set up for display at a multimedia art exhibit on March 1 at the Hampden Gallery at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The goal of the exhibit, titled “Home Drone,” is to expand viewers’ minds to imagine their reaction if thousands of deadly drones had struck in Massachusetts, rather than in Pakistan, Yemen, and Afghanistan.
The rhinestone drone was created by Heather Layton, a social intervention artist and lecturer at the University of Rochester, and Brian Bailey, professor of adolescence education with a focus on social justice at Nazareth College. The pair was named “citizen diplomats” by the U.S. Department of State in 2012.
The Home Drone exhibition combines this installation, a history of the U.S. drone program, and a map of drone strikes that have occurred in Pakistan superimposed onto a map of Massachusetts to indicate what parts of the state would be wiped out.
Below is an example of a U.S. Predator drone on which the exhibit was based. The first Predator system was designed in order for the Department of Defense to provide better intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance information combined with the arms of a war-fighter.
Home Drone will be on exhibit at the Hampden Gallery at UMass Amherst until Tuesday, March 26, with the exception of March 17-24. The gallery is open from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and on Sundays from 2 to 5 p.m.
Enjoy these additional images documenting the creation of Layton's U.S. Predator replica:
All images courtesy of:
Wesley Blixt, University of Massachusetts Amherst
J.Adam Fenster, University of Rochester
Kevin Layden, University of Rochester
For more information visit University of Rochester’s website.
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