Tré Reising, Live, Love, Laugh Until You Cry. Image courtesy of the artist viaGiant glitter emojis—because if words say too much, how else can an artist communicate?Back in February, Indianapolis-born, Brooklyn-based artist Tré Reising had an artwork removed from the Indianapolis International Airport. #Belieb, a glitter-covered wall sculpture that spelled out the Justin Bieber-related hashtag was designed by Reising to "become an Instagram-framed–ready piece that would fit well into the cropping of Instagram and become traded and shared as a meme.” It was nixed after officials at the Indianapolis Airport Authority’s art program found the work potentially offensive "in light of the popster’s well-documented legal troubles," according to the Indianapolis Monthly.
“Emoji icons have been introduced into our digital vernacular and everyone understands what they mean. […] Since emojis only exist digitally and in small scale, by giving them a large physical presence Reising invites the viewer to photograph and share these real-world icons the same way one would the digital versions,” explains Reising's artist statement on the piece. Whether visitors to the Indianapolis International Airport will Instagram Live, Love, Laugh, Laugh Until You Cry, to the same levels they would have for #Belieb, however, remains to be determined.
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