Post-Hot-Potato Update:

At 8:00 a.m. on the morning of April 19th, 7 Jesus figurines began their journey. Throughout the following hours, they would be handed back and forth, stuffed in backpacks, dropped and broken, and in some cases (we can only assume), discarded. By the day's end (5:00 p.m.), only three are accounted for: one on a DAAP fifth floor classroom, one in the DAAP computer lab, and one elsewhere on the UC campus. Reports came in of a 4th being carried down the street, away from the building and towards its new home... Where are the other 4 Jesus'?

We may never know...

Hot-Potato Jesus

So what's this all about?

Hot-Potato Jesus is an art experiment exploring relational connections and the transference of an object. Not just any object: a Jesus figurine. To some, a symbol of divinity and therefore worthy of sacred respect. To others, a symbol of intolerance and religious elitism. And to still others, a toy.

This project seeks to set in motion a system that both depends upon a relational network and at the same time, frustrates that network through the passing of a potent, and sometimes volatile, symbol. In the opinion of this artist, this is an accurate picture of much religious expansion (both Christian and in other faith groups).

Some of the questions that guided this project include:
- Will an object with such loaded content find its way through the day, or will it be discarded prematurely?
- How does the discomfort of passing along a Jesus figurine expose what some believe to be the relational intrusion of traditional views of religious expansion?
- Since these figurines will be passed through a network of relationships, will the trust in those relationships be strong enough to “carry” these pieces throughout the day? In other words, will they make it?

If you participated in Hot-Potato Jesus, please feel free to leave a comment below.

- Tim Parsley