War is Heck, 2002, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, lithograph, photolithograph, and collage, 58 9/16 × 57 5/8 in., Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; gift of Dorothee Peiper-Riegraf and Hinrech Peiper 2006.287, Printed by Catherine Chauvin, with Matt Ebert, Published by P.R.I.N.T. Press, Denton, Texas, © Jaune Quick-to-See Smith
War is Heck
Narrator: In War is Heck, Smith used a printmaking technique called chine-collé to collage bits of paper onto the background. Throughout this work, the artist inserts references to war. In the upper left hand corner, you can find a card from the Mexican game of chance,lotería. It reads “El Soldado,” the soldier.
Jaune Quick-to-See Smith: It’s like the common people going to war, being led to slaughter. Because the dictators or the men in power, you know they always stay safe and the people wind up on the battlefield, or in their villages. And often it's the women and children.
Most of the time in the 2000s I was reacting to the issue of the Iraq War, or, you know, things that were going on in the Middle East, Afghanistan. You know I always think this work is going to be obsolete. “Oh, I'm making this now but, you know, next year this could be ended and we won't be dealing with this.” And then next year comes and things get worse, or another war starts, so this work stays ever present.