The Chicks began their lives at Barnhart Brothers and Spindler Type Foundry (Chicago) in the Victorian era; they were originally metal type printer’s ornaments of unknown comedic purpose. The chicks were digitized by Richard Kegler of P22 type foundry as part of the LTC Creepy Ornaments collection; Chris Fritton uses them as the primary iconography of The Baltimore Catechism. Chicks were inserted as comic relief, absurdist propaganda, and hopelessly oblique answers to hopelessly intractable questions.
The Chicks were also the subject matter for 12 large-scale woodcuts made in conjunction with The Baltimore Catechism – they were intended to serve as “Stations of the Cross” during performances and readings of the text. The woodblocks measure 32″ x 47″, and the prints measure 35″ x 45″.
