Peeps Show

There's a Peeps show at Riverfront Arts Center in Stevens Point.

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

a group of artists whose works are on display though Saturday at Riverfront Arts Center in Stevens Point picked a colorful and malleable medium to express their creativity: Peeps.

That's right, the chick- and bunny-shaped fluffy marshmallow confections with an almost limitless shelf life have been pasted, contorted, propped up and smooshed into artwork ranging from tableaux of yoga positions, a crime scene lineup and burlesque show to a mash-up of Da Vinci's "Mona Lisa."

Organizing an art show around a candy that will grace millions of Easter baskets on Sunday was spurred by the proliferation of Peeps art on the Internet, said Riverfront Arts Center Director Brenda Gingles. The free gallery, which opened in 1999, was looking for ways to attract more visitors. It worked.

"This is our second annual Peeps Show. I say that because I don't know if we can stop it," said Gingles, who limits submissions to 50 because of gallery space.

The first Peeps Show lasted a week, but it was so popular it was extended to two weeks this year. The number of visitors is triple the amount that come to other exhibits at the gallery, Gingles said.

On Tuesday, visitors began streaming into the gallery shortly after the doors opened at 11 a.m., including parents who gently admonished their kids not to touch or eat the Peeps. They squinted at the small placards featuring the names of the artwork - "Te Peep" of a tepee scene; "Chick Magnet" of a Peep clad in cool sunglasses; and "Holy Easter Mr. President" of a painting of Barack Obama adorned with Peeps.

A few have adult themes, such as "Night of the Living Peeps," which portray Peeps oozing fake blood, as well as "Peeping Tom" of a bunny Peep taking a bath while another Peep ogles through the bathroom window.

As she walked through the gallery, Gingles pointed to a Peep bunny wearing a brown hat, running from a large ball.

"A young kid did this, it's just amazing, it's Peepiana Jones," she said of the famous opening scene from "Raiders of the Lost Ark."

...The popularity of Peeps art has been growing for the last half-dozen years or so, said Ellie Deardorff, spokeswoman for Just Born Inc., the Pennsylvania company that manufactures Peeps.

The Peeps art in this exhibit isn't controversial, but Peeps have been used in some creations of questionable taste.

A year ago, students at Osbourn High School in Manassas City, Virginia had a history class project that required them to make dioramas depicting events from American history using cardboard and Peeps.

It's a tradition at the school. In 2009, the tradition drew national attention.

From Washington's News4:

Hooded Peeps used in a history project at Osbourn High School in Manassas City, Virginia had some parents seeing more than sticky marshmallow treats.

The white-coned Peeps display depicts a Klu Klux Klan march on Washington.

"As a parent, I think it's ridiculous," school parent Alfred Benton said. "I don't think it should be at the school or the front office."

Some students support their classmates' right to make such a controversial display. "People who take offense need to accept it is a part of history whether they like it or not," said Osbourn student Calla Feucht.

"I hope most peple would look at it as a piece of history. We can't deny history, but I can see some people being offended," added Osbourn senior Jonah Higgenbottom, who took the class last year and made his own (non-KKK) Peeps project.

That's not the point, according to parent Vicki Henderson, who called the display "despicable."

"Some people want to know that part of their history... but it's degrading to others," she told News4.

The school system said that the Klu Klux Klan Peeps are a part of a history class project, a presentation using cardboard and Peeps that is done every year at the school. They also said that they have not received any complaints about the display and that there are no plans to take it down.

Other scenes on display show Peeps at Pearl Harbor and Peeps at Iwo Jima.

Video.

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I don't think dramatic scenes from American history, like raising the American flag on Iwo Jima, or the attack on Pearl Harbor, or a KKK march on Washington, should be depicted with Peeps.

Sure, it's silly and probably fun for the students; but it's a weird and disrespectful kind of fun.

According to the news report, an angry parent e-mailed a photo of the KKK Peeps to the station.

We shouldn't rewrite our history or deem some of it too hurtful to portray. It is what it is. The KKK isn't being glorified in the project.

Actually, I think U.S. Marine Peeps on Iwo Jima are just as offensive as KKK Peeps in Washington.

I don't know why the display with Peeps wearing KKK hoods would be considered any more despicable or degrading than Peeps being used to portray other figures in American history, especially heroes.

If anything, I'm less troubled by the KKK Peeps, historical figures that don't deserve respect, than the Peeps as U.S. Marines.

I question the appropriateness of the project overall.

I can't imagine Peeps being used in a 9/11 display or a Hurricane Katrina scene.

Using Peeps in the project makes light of some very dark moments in our history.

However, the Peeps art on display in Stevens Point seems to be free of heavy themes, providing an enjoyable, lighthearted experience.

That's a much better use of Peeps than turning them into Klansmen.

The best use of Peeps: EATING THEM.