Bill Dugan
Born: Salem, Massachusetts, 1947
Served in Thailand, U.S. Air Force
Khorat and Udorn
Morgue Laboratory Technician, 1970-71
From the Artist:
I was an Air Force lab tech and did autopsies and bagged bodies in Thailand. I also did the same thing for a while when I got back to the States. Yes, Back in the World, Again is about how it felt to come back. The pieces of bone, brass, shells, braided in the creature's hair and hanging from its belt, are tokens, mementos, souvenirs, transitional objects of our life. We all carry tokens with us to strange places for magical protection.In 1975, when I was in graduate school, someone ran over a squirrel in front of me on the road one day. I stopped, picked it up (it was dead). and carried it to the studio. Then I skinned and cooked it on a wood fire and ate it. I tanned the skin. After that I picked up lots of road kill and started printing the skins and incorporating the bones and other parts into sculpture. I made homages to the animals, honorable burials. Needless to say, lots of folks thought I was strange and it was real hard to get in shows. I still use animal parts in my sculptures, drawings, and prints.
I'm So Short, My Head Hurts reflects the language used during the war and the excitement of going home.I didn't know I would carry this with me for so long. If the base of the sculpture is touched the helmet vibrates, somewhat like having a loose brain stem.
Yes, going to Southeast Asia influenced my life and my art.
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