Confederate States of America Loan 2, 43 x 71cm

See also Share

Song of the South is a series of paintings on nineteenth century Confederate Government shares. The works recall Locke’s many trips to Georgia to visit his father, encountering objects in antique shops that reflected the South’s dark history. The works not only explore ideas of Patriotism and Americanism, but also reflect his many encounters with the US over the past decades. These are physical links to the facts of the past, as genuine Confederate Government Bonds, with thier cameos of Justice and Liberty, are over-laid and contextualised with images of historical and contemporary figures, such as musicians, boy-soldier drummers, or college marching bands. Yet perhaps the most prominent reminder that certain truths have been lost to a mythic forgetfulness is the motif of Washington on horseback, at the top of these antique documents.

Left - Confederate States of America Loan 1, 46 x 76 cm. Right - Confederate States of America Loan 5, 44 x 67cm

Detail of Confederate States of America Loan 4, 43 x 69cm