This is a piece I had to think of for a long time. Many times, I will ferment on an artistic idea for months before I actually do anything about it, mostly because I am intimidated about the execution of what I see in my mind. This piece seemed like it would be a stretch for me artistically, so I was hesitant to try it. I jotted down the idea and kept adding to my notes in the hopes that inspiration or bravery would strike.
One evening a while back, I finally decided to try.
This piece is a direct reference to Picasso's "Guernica", wherein Picasso attempts to encapsulate the horrors of the Spanish Civil War and as a response to the bombing of Guernica, a Basque county village in northern Spain by Nazi German and Fascist Italian forces at the behest of Spanish Nationalists.
Guernica portrays the horror of not only man's inhumanity to man, but man's inhumanity to his own countrymen out of a misguided sense of populism and blind nationalism. Guernica was used as a touring exhibition to raise money for Spanish Civil War relief efforts. Because of Picasso's fame and talent, his art was used successfully to raise awareness globally about the Spanish Civil War and draw attention to the plight of the country.
In my rendition of this piece, I have studied the original composition relatively faithfully, as well as the limited color palette, with some exceptions. Whilst the figures in Picasso's piece are the townspeople of Guernica, innocent civilian bystanders crushed under the wheels of war, the pieces in my representation represent the movements behind which they stand, and the ideals which they stand for, as compromised in our current zeitgeist.
From left to right, the figures are: Harriet Tubman, Sitting Bull, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Abraham Lincoln, and Lady Liberty. Understanding what these figures, both historical and metaphorical, represent to American culture, civilization and evolution is central to understanding why they appear here in such a fashion. They represent everything that is at stake during our march into a brave new future.
Because the future that we march towards will be a reflection of our collective American Dreams. Whether it is a dream like Dr. King envisioned, or a consumerist dystopia fraught with war and suffering is up to us.
Thank you to Jason Welch at Jason Welch Photography for capturing the color gradient in this piece.
American Dreams is for sale. Please contact us at Dada.Collective.Gallery@gmail.com
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