dimensions: 16" x 24"
media: bling, collage & various paints on birch panel
statement: In this painting, I’m parodying President George W. Bush by comparing him to King George III, the man whom we declared our independence from in 1776. Vestiges of the bottom layer show sections of the Declaration of Independence, over which oil wells spew pools of blackness. Behind him, a nuclear explosion doubles as a thought bubble in which George dreams of Guatanamo Bay and its orange-clad enemy combatants. I’ve used pieces of bling, including gold, pearls and not-precious stones as alternative media in this “portrait” of Bush, along with metallic and iridescent paint. It functions as a warning against an imminent, disastrous future if we continue on the path we’re on.