2020 Politics and Prints

The 2020 presidential election is upon us in the United States. The candidates have debated and bantered back and forth for month now, and soon election day will be here. As in past elections, printmaking has been a vital visual component for the public to see the portraits of the candidates, and the posters crested over the years have become popular collector items.

I have chosen a sampling of different campaign posters and political candidate portraits for this post. The bright, vibrant work of Andy warhol has been popular since the 60s. Other artists have chosen more descriptibe portraits, those of Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas.

The importrant thing to do is exercise our right to Vote for the candidate we each feel is best suited for the presidency. Every vote counts. Let's see what the next month brings....VOTE!

2020: A Summer of Protests and Marches

Indeed, 2020 is proving to be a unique year. This summer has shown itself to be unique as well. Since the pandemic began last spring, people are quarantined, families are isolated and going to a beach or to a barbeque seems like a dream from a bygone era. Instead this summer is one full of marches, protests, gatherings of people, with voices raised in frustration, unified to find justice and overdue recognition. In a few short months of pandemic shutdown, people have come together and have voiced their concerns over health, equality of the races, police brutality, etc., etc. These are not new themes, but ones carried over half a century - really, much longer than that.

There are too many statistics of people (mainly of color) having been brutally murdered, beaten, wrongly shot. It needs to stop. It needs to stop. It needs to stop. Period.

I have selected several images detailing protest from the web. Many thanks to everyone included here, but there are so many images to choose from. A sad state of our time where so much pain needs to be addressed. These images cover a number of issues, but the common element is one of protest.

John Lewis, the great Civil rights era leader from Georgia who recently lost his battle with cancer was memorialized this week. I came across one of his quotes which I think bears repeating...“Go out there, Speak up, speak out! Get in the way, get in good trouble! Necessary trouble! And help redeem the soul of America.” Go forth, my inked up friends, and speak the truth as only we can - through great works.

Memorial Day Greetings

Greetings to everyone this holiday weekend. In the present circumstances this day takes on a significance as we remember those who lost their lives in service of their country, but also the global loss of life due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Be safe, and stay well.

Blessings to All this Easter

Blessings to all this Easter weekend. Praying that everyone is safe and that we get through this troubling time of pandemic. Take Care.

Aaron S. Coleman: A Printmaker for Our Time

The prints of Aaron Coleman give rise to the old claim that art can change the world. Indeed, the work of Aaron Coleman brings together different factions of philosophy, religion and hip hop culture to make very strong messages about the artist's feelings on society today. They are so strong in fact that they proclaim a day of reckoning is upon us.

This work is bold, colorful and poignantly creates messages that hit the viewer like a lightning bolt. Here is an artist who is fearless, who deftly blends together images of saints, silhouette beating of Rodney King, graffiti and much more. Coleman is using all imagery at his disposal to create striking and effective work that reflects our fears and hopes. He mashes it all together and through the chaos we will hopefully find redemption and be saved. Let us all revel in his glory, for this is an artist worth watching.

Coleman is a mixed media artist/printmaker whose works focus on political and social issues. He combines imagery from comic books and stained-glass windows to raise questions concerning misconstrued belief systems and twisted moral values in our society. Coleman’s background in hip-hop culture and street art is also a major influence in his work.

Born January, 1985, in Washington D.C.

MFA, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb IL
BFA, Herron School of Art and Design
Assistant Professor of Art, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ
Also taught at California State University, in Fresno and Northern Illinois University, in Dekalb.

Public collections:
Ino-cho Paper Museum in Kochi, Japan
The University of Colorado, CO
University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN
Wichita State University, Wichita, KS
Yekaterinburg Museum of Art, Yekaterinburg, Russia
and many other public and private collections.