In 2016 Trump claimed, “I could stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose voters”. This statement shocked artist Eric Corriel and inspired him to created tiny trump in 2017. tiny trump is a three inch tall cardboard protest sticker, which transforms a wide-ranging demographic into activists, one tiny act of resistance at a time. In three years time, tiny trump has grown into one of the largest participatory crowdsourced public art installations.
tiny trump, flips the script on the larger than life persona Trump projects to the world by minimizing him, literally. While the sticker is small it carries a big message. Each tiny trump captures a different aspect of Trump’s presidency and personality, ranging from Fake News to I ❤️ KIDS in Cages, to Pussy Grabber. There are 60 messages in all. The power of tiny trump comes not from the object itself but from public participation, turning people into activists who place mini protest signs in the world, creating political and cultural commentary through public tableaux which are shared on social media, @maketrumptiny or the hashtag #tinytrump.
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“Every day of the Trump presidency has felt like my house is on fire. As an artist who has worked in the public realm for over a decade, I know how powerful publicly visible, eye-catching statements can be. They subconsciously crawl into people’s brains, influence opinions, and can end up swaying the zeitgeist,” said artist Eric Corriel. “Given the times we live in, I cannot think of a more important job for art to do than to give people the power to push back against the authoritarian, tribalistic, and corrosive values coming from the White House and pervading our political and cultural landscape. tiny trump, gives people a tangible and public way to resist”
Through tiny trump, Corriel has transformed the disheartened, inactive American public into passionate activists. Since the project started, tiny trump has gained traction with over 6,600 participants nationally and internationally. All 50 states are represented, with some of the highest number of participants in swing states such as Florida and Wisconsin and traditionally red states such as Texas. By using Trump’s own words and policies, the project politically engages the public and empowers participants by giving them a publicly visible and meaningful way to push back, resist, and collectively say “this is not okay! He is NOT our president!”
