don't tread on me | Cyrus Smith
Cyrus sent us this description of his flag-making extravaganza:"I spent most of my time at Elsewhere Collaborative working with the Gadsden Flag (the Don't Tread On Me flag). The flag, which dates back to the American Revolution, originated in the Carolinas and has gained some attention lately as the flag of the "tea-party." I found the flag for sale across the street at a military surplus and general store called "Co's."I was talking with the shop owner Bill about them and he said, "only problem is they're made in China!" So I offered to make some in America if he would sell them in his shop... to which he said "hell yeah." Flags are screen-printed in three layers, and hand sewn with a design copied exactly from the Chinese version. Once completed, Bill put my flag on display alongside the Chinese one, so that shoppers could take their pick, $6 for the Chinese made, or $20 for the American made. This also made for quite an intimidating display out front... Don't tread on this store! Bill of Co's Grocery, my art dealer this fall, is pictured below manning the shop at Co's. One of the Gadsden Flags is printed on material from the Elsewhere collection. We flew this flag for about 3 weeks toward the end of my residency. The elsewhere staff had some reservations about this statement, but in the end it made for an impressive display of solidarity with the neighborhood."
