Great movements need more than ideas. They need art to connect, motivate, and bring people together.
That’s why Atheists United is proud to offer an artist in our community the materials, space, and inspiration for Infidel: a unique art installation. You’re invited to our opening reception this weekend.
Join us Sunday, June 7th at 5pm for wine, snacks, and opportunities to paint your own art on recycled religious signage.
From Propaganda to Proof: The Occupation of Public Space
"Infidel" focuses on the unauthorized intrusion into the social sphere by tens of thousands of religious propaganda signs, predominantly Christ–centric, posted on US highways, overpasses, and telephone poles. Erhan Us defines these metal and plastic placards not merely as expressions of faith, but as ideological attempts to seize public space; gears in a larger propaganda machine that normalizes religious authority through constant repetition.
The works in the exhibition were made possible through the direct interventions of the Atheist Street Pirates, a civil and secular counter–offensive initiative founded in 2021 under the umbrella of Atheists United in Los Angeles. By removing over 6,000 of these signs from public streets and donating hundreds to the artist, the group provided the raw material to transform propaganda into a contemporary art project.
Featuring the original signs alongside their manipulated counterparts, the installations challenge viewers to move back and forth along the axis of belief and disbelief, questioning what is real. The exhibition prompts critical inquiries: Who shapes our public spaces? Which messages are permitted to occupy them, and who do these spaces truly belong to?
The artist summarizes the core philosophy of the project in his exhibition text: "These remnants are no longer tools of propaganda. They are now evidence. They are the physical traces, torn from public spaces, of how those guided by religion view themselves as superior to the rest of society. For if spaces belong to whichever ideology screams the loudest, the demagogues and manipulators will always win."
About the Artist
Born in Ankara in 1987, conceptual artist and writer Erhan Us is recognized for his multifaceted career spanning the international art world, academia, and communications. He holds undergraduate degrees in TH Management, Sociology, and Philosophy from Bilkent, Istanbul, and Anadolu Universities, and received his Master of Fine Arts [MFA] in Multidisciplinary Art from the prestigious Maryland Institute College of Art [MICA].
As the CEO of A.D. 1644 Marketing Group, Us has led pioneering marketing projects that garnered "Best Digital & Strategic Agency" accolades. He has served as president for 12 non–governmental organizations and associations, receiving multiple international honors for his leadership. The author of four books Digital Prestige, Status Quo, Polisopolis, and Overestimation and more than 80 articles, Us lectures on marketing and art, and presides over the Experimental Art Collective USA. A former Senior Curator of the Museum of Science Fiction, his artworks have been showcased in over 160 exhibitions across 27 countries, including 15 solo shows.
Contact: For extra image requests, artist interviews, and media inquiries, please contact art@erhanus.com.