<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> kind of Socialist Realist propag<strong>and</strong>a art Stalin would have loved. Whatever one thinks of <strong>the</strong> painting, Raven’s lawsuit does raise legitimate questions about institutional bias (not to be confused with state censorship) akin to Banned in Boston morals censorship <strong>the</strong> Brahmin authorities used to exercise <strong>the</strong>re. I could see <strong>the</strong> poster for our exhibit before I’d even seen <strong>the</strong> painting. Truth be told, I was surprised when Raven accepted <strong>the</strong> Center’s invitation to show Unafraid <strong>and</strong> Unashamed. And even more surprised when he told me why. Showing his painting along with <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>rs by Tim Atseff <strong>and</strong> Jim Boden, which I sent him images of to be sure he knew what he was getting into, might help start a dialogue between Trump supporters <strong>and</strong> opponents, he said. It was a dialogue, he added, which he thought was necessary <strong>and</strong> long overdue. <strong>The</strong> <strong>Good</strong>, <strong>the</strong> <strong>Bad</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Ugly</strong>: Portraits of Our (Unindicted) Leader is an unusual exhibit because, unlike most museum exhibitions in <strong>the</strong> United States, it is being presented to encourage discussion <strong>and</strong> political debate in real time, when it’s needed. If <strong>the</strong> discussion <strong>and</strong> political debate leads to dialogue, so much better. <strong>The</strong> artists have agreed to talk about <strong>the</strong>ir art <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> politics that motivated <strong>the</strong>m to create it. We’ll also invite o<strong>the</strong>rs---political scientists, ethicists, Constitutional experts—to talk about civic responsibility <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> ethical, moral <strong>and</strong> legal duties <strong>and</strong> responsibilities, not only of common citizens, but of civil servants <strong>and</strong> military personnel when ordered to carry out <strong>the</strong> wishes or policies of a leader who may be ill-informed, psychologically unbalanced or who willfully orders government employees to violate <strong>the</strong> laws <strong>and</strong> Constitution he has sworn to uphold <strong>and</strong> protect. We’ll also discuss censorship in <strong>the</strong> arts <strong>and</strong> Michael Cohen’s warning that this President may refuse to leave office when his term is up. What do we do? What if he orders <strong>the</strong> FBI to detain journalists or <strong>the</strong> editors, publishers <strong>and</strong> producers of <strong>the</strong> “fake news” media he’s attempted to discredit <strong>and</strong> blame for his missteps <strong>and</strong> failures. What if he suspends <strong>the</strong> writ of habeas corpus, which <strong>the</strong> Constitution gives him <strong>the</strong> power to do? What if he signs an executive order making it a crime to question <strong>the</strong> veracity or accuracy of Presidential statements, official government reports <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> statistics underlying <strong>the</strong>m? Oh, you say, that’s unthinkable. I would say look closely at <strong>the</strong> paintings <strong>and</strong> collages in this exhibit because <strong>the</strong>y give us clues to a number of unthinkable things we should all be thinking about. Tim Atseff was for years a political cartoonist, a managing editor <strong>and</strong> magazine editor at <strong>the</strong> Syracuse (N.Y). Post-St<strong>and</strong>ard. Jim Boden recently retired from Coker College in Hartsville, S.C., where he was a professor of fine arts. Julian Raven brings <strong>the</strong> perspective of an émigré born in Great Britain <strong>and</strong> educated in Spain who’s become a U.S. citizen. This exhibit, <strong>The</strong> <strong>Good</strong>, <strong>the</strong> <strong>Bad</strong> & <strong>The</strong> <strong>Ugly</strong>: Portraits of Our (Unindicted) Leader, demonstrates what we mean when we say THE CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY POLITICAL ART aspires to be <strong>The</strong> Art World’s Editorial Page. We’ll be exhibiting fine <strong>and</strong> graphic art that addresses real issues in real time, issues central to <strong>the</strong> survival of <strong>the</strong> country we once thought we lived in…for all to see.
TSEFF ! 7DEADLY SINS A TRUMP DYSTOPIAN HEPTOLOGY THE CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY POLITICAL ART WASHINGTON, DC