VIEW IN MY ROOM
Khashoggi's Royal Photo Bomb Painting
United States
Painting, Acrylic on Canvas
Size: 40 W x 30 H x 1.5 D in
Ships in a Crate
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About The Artwork
"Photo Bombs" are supposed to be funny. They are unwarranted interjections into people's private photos. There have been many images of weddings ruined by rowdy crashers or dogs being dogs. When the news broke about Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi's disappearance and likely murder, the US media kept showing a "selfie" of 60-year old Jamal and his 35-year-old Turkish fiancé, Hatice Cengiz. I figured it was the only photo they had of the two of them together. So when it was determined by the CIA that Jamal's gruesome death and dismemberment was ordered by the crown prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), I thought that their "selfie" would make the scariest "photo bomb" if you injected MBS. I turned the tree trunk behind Jamal's head into a backwards US flag to represent Pres. Trump's refusal to believe anything except MBS' account. US interest in million dollar arms deals with Saudi Arabia was more important than the murder of a Saudi journalist living and working in the US. The open hand in Jamal's beard I've used in other paintings before. It represents the murder or murders of unarmed individuals. In Jamal's case, it was a 15 man hit squad against one. The Twitter bird over Hatice's shoulder appeared as a result of news stores stating there was a negative Twitter campaign that continued to harass Jamal up until his death. I was alarmed to watch a YouTube interview with Hatice afterwards saying that Jamal was not worried about anything before going into the Saudi consulate in Turkey on October 2. He was there to divorce his wife and get papers to marry Hatice. He handed her his phone and asked her to wait. Yet, she waited three hours before sounding the alarm. I'll bet Jamal's family realized then he picked the wrong girl to have his back. Now three months after his death, Hatice has written a book in Turkey about Jamal Khashoggi. A US release is expected soon. The book came from a diary that she kept over their 5-month relationship. However, the book may raise more questions than it answers. When Turkey's president recently asked the world, "Why isn't anyone angry about Jamal Khashoggi's murder and why aren't they doing something about it?" Well I'm angry, and my best "voice" is my art.
Details & Dimensions
Painting:Acrylic on Canvas
Original:One-of-a-kind Artwork
Size:40 W x 30 H x 1.5 D in
Frame:Not Framed
Ready to Hang:Not applicable
Packaging:Ships in a Crate
Shipping & Returns
Delivery Time:Typically 5-7 business days for domestic shipments, 10-14 business days for international shipments.
Handling:Ships in a wooden crate for additional protection of heavy or oversized artworks. Crated works are subject to an $80 care and handling fee. Artists are responsible for packaging and adhering to Saatchi Art’s packaging guidelines.
Ships From:United States.
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United States
I'm a journalist by trade, but I have been an artist most of my life. I started taking private art lessons in Omaha, Nebraska, at age 9. But then by age 12, I had put art on the back burner for cheerleading and boys. So then when I went to college, I got poor grades in art so I switched to writing. I worked at small ad agencies, newspapers and large corporations most of my career. I've always done portraits because I find them the most challenging. I would always paint pictures of friends and coworkers during the holidays to make extra money. When I lived in Chicago, my portraits became bigger and brighter. I think it was because I lived in an artist building on the corner of Milwaukee and Damon, where there were artists from all cultures living there. They encouraged me to stretch the limits of my creativity. On my way to work in the city, I admired the large scale bright banners that I would see in the apartments along the El line. Some were political, others decorative, but the Expressionist portraits I'll never forget! Big gallons of acrylic hardware paint usually cover the backgrounds of the door-sized cotton curtains that I have been painting for the past 10 years. I use tiny brushes to get the hard edges. In 2009, I painted a small banner of Barack Obama in response to a rousing speech I heard on TV. It was later used at a political rally at a restaurant in Idyllwild where I live. Then I started doing more banners of jazz icons to decorate that same restaurant each year during a jazz concert. I like painting big because of its impact! It can be challenging to get the right scale. I don't use a projector or any equipment except chalk. Sometimes it takes awhile to get it right! I turn the canvas over and over and make the blocks of color more abstract and bright! Even though sometimes I paint political figures, I don't like to discuss politics with strangers! They always talk louder than me and seem to know more about the subject, but I believe that a strong image is better than all the words you can say! Most of the banners I've done are of people I admire who are creative in the arts or in the public arena who have courage and determination! Lately, I have been doing a series that deals with race relations in the United States. Every time there's a shooting, and another young black man dies, it makes the news for awhile, and then disappears from public memory.
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