I installed an art project in the school library, Highland Campus ACC
Paul Schuster
Sodom City Guide
2019
Mixed Media Sculpture: wood, book, paper and salt
H 8" , W 15" , D 18"
120 Days of Sodomy
Marquis de Sade (1740-1814)
Written 1785 while incarcerated in the Bastille
Published posthumously 1904
M. Sade, the most banned author in history, wrote 120 Days of Sodomy on a scroll he kept hidden in his cell at the Bastille. He was transferred to a different facility days before the French Revolution. He died believing his scroll was lost forever. But the writing did survive and lived on through a series of private erotica collectors until it was published in 1904. The book is still banned in some countries..
Sodomy, or so called “Crimes Against Nature” are still illegal in twelve states, including Texas. This is despite the the U.S. Supreme Court ruled them to be unconstitutional.
The word Sodomy comes from the ancient city of Sodom. The Old Testament book of Genesis explains that Sodom was destroyed by fire and brimstone. Lot, was able to escape Sodom before destruction, after a warning from an angel. He assembled his wife and daughters foe their hasty escape. Lot’s wife (Ado, or Edith) turned back as they fled, to get one last glimpse. God turned her into a pillar of salt for that glance, according to Genesis. She, along with the other inhabitants of Sodom were censored for their wickedness.
This sculpture plays with the idea Edith (wife of Lot) left Sodom with a souvenir, a Guide to the city. Consequently, the book was on her when she was turned into a pillar of salt. Hidden inside the book is a scroll of hand made paper, as the Marquis de Sade had hidden his book, 120 Days of Sodomy.
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