ARTIST STATEMENT
Article I, Section 9, Clause 8 of the U.S. Constitution—commonly known as the Emoluments Clause—was designed to prevent corruption by prohibiting government officials from accepting gifts, payments, or titles from foreign states without the approval of Congress. It’s one of the Constitution’s early safeguards against the abuse of power.
In this weaving, I shredded real U.S. currency and the Emoluments Clause itself to confront how the presidency has been, and continues to be, used for personal enrichment. What was written to protect democracy now forecasts its unraveling. I dismantle symbols of power—U.S. currency and constitutional text—not to destroy, but to expose and call attention to the Trump transgressions.
This work does not aim to restore what once was. It exists to provoke, to confront, to insist on accountability. It is not subtle. It is not neutral. It is a woven act of dissent.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Ellis Angel is an activist artist based in New Jersey who weaves protest into form. Through mixed-media works made from shredded government documents, protest posters, banned books, and U.S. currency, Ellis turns destruction into commentary—challenging political abuse, censorship, and the erosion of public trust. This practice draws from the history of weaving as both a domestic craft and a subversive act. Using everyday materials like U.S. currency, toilet paper, and banned books creating a visual commentary on corruption, censorship, civil rights, and the fragility of democracy. The work bridges the personal and the political—confronting power, preserving memory, and calling audiences to action. Ellis’s work has been featured in The Censor’s Cut: Weavings for Intellectual Freedom, a national exhibition in partnership with PEN America and Magic City Books for Banned Books Week, as well as in Crafting Democracy: Fiber Arts & Activism, the Newark Arts Festival, Be Square at Maryland Hall, and Artist as Activist at Rowan University Art Gallery & Museum.
© Ellis Angel