Photographic Interpretations

Last week the Trump administration rolled out their proposed fiscal budget for 2018. This budget showed massive increases to our defense and Homeland Security at the cost of many programs that enrich our lives. In 2016 the federal budget was $3.899 Trillion with only .02% of it going to the National Endowment for the Arts , the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.  This percentage  may seem negligible  but f ederal dollars are used to leverage state, local and private funding that supports a network of arts organizations, educational entities, museums, libraries and public broadcasting affiliates.  Say goodbye to Bert and Ernie, art therapy for our veterans returning from war and even your local NPR radio station. Patricia Aufderheide, founder of the Center for Media and Social Impact at American University says,  “The Corporation for Public Broadcasting money i...

We all know that the media has an issue with nudity of TV. You can show all the violence you want, dramatic, bloody, intense, but show one buttock and the children might be scared for life. So with the new administration this is actually going to get worse. I came across an old Huffington Report from 2015 where Bloomberg News blurred a Modigliani painting that sold for a record $170 million.  And from that Stephen Colbert did a 6 minute segment on his show. Check it hour HERE

Having studied art history and being very interested in Italian art, one piece that always caught my attention is the Pietà by Michelangelo. This sculpture was created in 1498 to 1499 and  depicts the body of  Jesus  on the lap of his mother  Mary  after the  Crucifixion .  Not being a religious person this sculpture means something different to me then to a devote Catholic. In Michelangelo's depiction I see intense loss, sorry and opportunity terminated. So when I started combining my political views with my art, this beautiful work of art came to mind and I created "La Pietà,  Revisited  This images was created a few years ago but I feel it is more relevant now than ever. As always any comments are always welcome.