Exhibition

Shaun KeenanWyoming?

Presented by
Artie Galerie

Verse presents the third release of Artie Galerie, showcasing an exhibition by Shaun Keenan on Wyoming, a state of mind and legend often doubted for its existence.

Shaun Keenan

WYMNG

193 artworks

Wyoming?

I’ve never been to Wyoming, and I doubt I’ll ever go.

My dad loved Westerns and the history of the American West. He’s dead now but when he wasn’t I remember him telling me about Native American Tribes like the Sioux, Apache and Cheyenne.

I was terrified of the Indians in Cowboy films. I think he rooted for them. We have a skewed version of who is good or bad.

I made some pictures a while ago and situated them in Wyoming. Never wondering why. Other than liking the word. The sound and look of the very word, Wyoming. Pictures of street scenes and shopfronts and local characters. Never thinking about the wild west or my dad or anything.

Anyways, Artie commented and got in touch with an idea to use the subject of Wyoming for an exhibition. Exciting! So here we are. An exhibition on the very subject.

The idea is to show a varied and hopefully interesting look at the mythic state via the cover art of the aptly named ‘WYMNG’ magazine from 1969 -1982. Showcasing the landscape, history, wildlife and memorable events during this period.

The question mark in the exhibition title suggests intrigue or foul play or mystery or a typing error.

Whether it’s the birthplace of America’s only Black swimmer or the last state in America to legalise same sex sausages, I hope you, the viewer, enjoy the thirteen years presented.

Every image was made on my phone using a program called Neural Frames, a program that allows me to use my imagination in a way that culminates in work that …

I forgot to say my dad had dementia for five years prior to his death. Reality was blurred, hence the theme of pictures I’ve made.

I hope his love of the West, despite the confusion, is commemorated here.

Thank you.

Shaun

Wyoming?

My entire family is from Wyoming (if it exists), and I go all the time (LIES).

It is an impossibly empty place, the 9th largest by state by size but dead last in population. Tiny Delaware? 450,000 more people. Impossibly far away Alaska? 149,000 more people. Hell, even the cows outnumber humans 2.15:1 (that’s about 1.24mil cows btw).

A few months ago, I saw an artist posting some jpegs on Twitter. I remember one particularly that showed a small storefront located in Casper, Wyoming. Casper is a BOOMING metropolis of 58,000 people, the second biggest “city” in Wyoming.

It was one of those “not on my bingo card” moments and I had to know more. Why would someone be making art about this particular place that means so much to me but so little to most?

I reached out to the UK-based artist, Shaun Keenan, and said, “hey I’ve got an idea to use the subject of Wyoming for an exhibition.”

He was excited. So here we are. An exhibition on the very subject.

The concept I wanted to pursue was inspired by a Fake Rare entitled FAKEWYOMING by frog legend @Carsonated, itself a play on classic 1991 Garfield cartoon espousing that Wyoming actually does not exist.

Think about it. You’ve almost certainly heard of Wyoming but also very likely have never been. Probably don’t know anyone from there either (even I don’t).

As time has passed and internet communities have become wise to the Deep State’s lies and swampy rhetoric, the recognition of this farcical lie of existence is now kitty littered all over the Internet. Reddit community /r/wyomingdoesntexist, for example, has over 36k members whereas the radical /r/Wyoming truthers have a paltry 35k members (bots).

To commemorate such a profoundly powerful deception, artist Shaun Keenan presents 169 covers from WYMNG Magazine, a totes mcgotes real magazine that ran from 1969-1982 and documented the rise and fall of the so-called state of Wyoming.

I know my love of the Wyoming, the state(?) that defined who I am, is commemorated here.

Thank you, Shaun.

Artie