Plasma Pulpit 2, Munster, IN

The themes of salvation and spectacle come together in Joe Johnson’s brightly colored architectural views of Midwestern American “mega churches.” In this image of a modern pulpit adorned with three large plasma TV screens, Johnson relies on the formal rigor of his composition to organize the eclectic array of architectural styles that comprise the scene’s backdrop. Emptied of people, this vast interior space, designed as a house of worship, is stripped down to the theatrical props and media mechanisms used during services to incite religious fervor and devotion.