National Debt Project: Solo exhibition by Nicole Wilson

U.S. national debt in 2009 = $13,561,623,030,891.79*
U.S. national debt in 2023 = $33,167,334,044,723.16*

Fifteen years ago, in August of 2009, Obama was President of the United States, the world was reeling from the 2008 financial crisis, and the national debt was $13,561,623,030,891.79. Nicole Wilson was a 21 year-old art student in Philadelphia living off a summer research grant, having recently had the opportunity to vote in her first presidential election. The growing national deficit was at the top of the news cycle, with pundits claiming that a portion of the U.S. deficit belonged to every citizen of the country. According to them, the debt was “ours” to pay and it was growing exponentially each day. It was from this moment that an unusual and meticulously organized work of performance art was born. Praise Shadows Art Gallery is proud to present the exhibition debut of the National Debt Project, a durational body of work by New York-based artist Nicole Wilson, her second solo presentation at the gallery. 

The National Debt Project began on August 31, 2009. With all of the loose change that Wilson would find in her pockets, on the street, tucked away in nooks and crannies, it seemed ridiculous to her that the National Debt would continue to grow while money was floating around seemingly everywhere. In response, she decided to send the federal government her change to the United States Department of the Treasury, and copy President Obama on the correspondence. It was summer break, she was an art student, and it would be a satirical piece of performance art.

Through Obama’s second term in office, Trump’s presidency, and Biden’s current tenure, Wilson has never stopped sending in her loose change: taped to her letters and sent certified mail via USPS.

Now that the National Debt Project is approaching its 15th anniversary, Wilson’s years of daily contributions and letter writing to the federal government have evolved into a multifaceted and multimedia practice, all of which will be presented in the exhibition. Read more about the exhibition here.

Opening Reception: Thursday, August 15 from 6-8 pm

Artist Talk Moderated by Gloria Sutton: Saturday, September 14 from 3-4pm, Coolidge Corner Theatre. Registration opens in August.

*Public Debt Source: Bureau of the Fiscal Service, US Treasury, https://fiscaldata.treasury.gov/datasets/historical-debt-outstanding/historical-debt-outstanding. Accessed 15 March 2024.