Big bad bear
An environmental-art
group in Portland, Ore., is putting on a special birthday “roast”
for Smokey Bear. On July 15, the creative group called Orlo began
presenting Smoke Screen: Smokey Bear at 50, a multimedia exhibit
featuring artwork and presentations by three dozen artists. The
exhibit seeks to debunk 50 years of Forest Service propaganda
“hypnotizing” Americans into believing forest fires are bad, says
Orlo director Philip Krohn. The exhibit re-evaluates the history of
fire suppression, considers the benefit of fire in healthy forests
and offers perspectives on fire as a management tool. A highlight
of the show features a work by artists Jennifer Davis and Greg
Hahn, in which a younger, more enlightened Smokey of the “90s
debates a televised, elder Smokey. Orlo, a non-profit organization,
uses the creative arts to “rethink life on Earth.” Previous
exhibitions have included “The Promised Landfill: The Dump at the
End of the Oregon Trail,” and “Oregon Common Ground,” a photography
exhibit of rural Oregonians. Smoke Screen shows in Portland until
Aug. 26. For more information and a copy of The Bear Essential,
Orlo’s semiannual magazine of humor, subtle advocacy and
“straight-ahead news,” contact Orlo, 2516 NW 29th, Portland, OR
97210 (503/242-2330).
*Alexei
Rubenstein
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Big bad bear.
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