Allan McColum

          Allan’s art is unbelievably large, extensive, and at first overwhelming. If I was simply shown a room full of frames stencils on a table I would think it was not art. Just as if I had seen simply a bunch of cookie cutters and wood carvings put together I would simply think it is junk lying around. However, having him explain his motive in the video makes an abundant difference. With his framed stencils he essentially tried to show what a room of the billions of the unique people in the world would look like. Meanwhile, he still somehow has some sense of unity within the piece. His Shapes from Maine piece is inspiring for many reasons. Firstly, it is amazing that he was able to contact and incorporate works from people in the same state who have never met each other so well. Also, the fact that he allowed these people to create these stencils themselves with his guidance, and having it come together so beautifully. He stated that he wanted his art to tell a story. His Maine piece tells a story of the people and how they have managed to take something as insignificant as cookie cutters and creates extraordinary shapes. He may never be able to represent the billions of people in the world but his great art will speak volumes about people and their capabilities.