October 28, 2013

Too close to the edge?

I saw a photo yesterday of JFK and family -- it's in the public domain, I looked it up -- that struck me as the embodiment of what's meant on a personal level when people talk about Camelot.  Promise of the future, ideal vision, beauty, it can mean a lot of things.  The family is posed holding and loving their dogs -- six of them! -- squinting from the sun on their faces and wind in their hair.

I was thinking, just thinking, that it would be interesting to take that image and play with it as a painting.  And then pose other people, other pets, in the same way to create a different Camelot. Maybe as silly as putting in cats to replace the six dogs or as serious as putting in Obamas.  Nothing mean, just an exploration of what sets an idyllic scene with a narrative that suggests closeness, love, and a perfect time.   In spite of the endless public fascination with the Kennedys and the books, movies, tv shows about them, the first person I mentioned this to thought it was violating the family.   Too close to the edge of bad taste (it's art!  what's bad taste? oh, maybe.).

So I'm thinking.  In the meantime, here's the start of the painting.


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