The Winner

The Winner

2007

Oil on canvas, 48 inches x 66 inches

 

 

 

From the artist on this painting:

I am appalled by the fact that during the entire course of my lifetime
the people here where I live have been at war with other people somewhere in the world.
It seems that these wars have mostly been fomented by small cliques
of wealthy and powerful madmen for purposes of self-aggrandizement,
and for political control of the rest of us by violent coercion,
for the purpose of wealth extraction.

A good portion of what this wealth consists of is the result of work by artists.
Artists spend their time and energy creating things that while not necessary
to raw existence, serve to enhance and beatify our lives,
and to give us a sense of civilization and cultural advancement.
Some of the most revered and precious things in the world to
we humans are the artistic endeavors of our ancestors.

In the one of the most recent outbursts of war, we witnessed the destruction
of ancient cave sculptures in Afghanistan by angry religious fanatics,
and the ravaging of a museum in Iraq devoted to conserving our most ancient cultural heritage
by greedy small time pirates who were taking advantage of the chaos
resulting from the army of the United States invading the country to steal their oil.
We artists spend our lives working hard to make life nice for everyone, only to see our efforts dashed to pieces in seconds by wanton acts of foolish destruction.

Needless to say, I am bothered by this.

In this painting I wanted to depict the Winner. The Guy who Won the War.
The last one standing after the world has all been blown to bits, and all the opposition crushed.
I hope he enjoys the spoils.