Another Obama supporter becoming disillusioned with “da One”:

Has President Barack Obama lost his ability to inspire hope?

Shepard Fairey, the artist whose iconic, Warhol-style “Hope” poster became one of the most enduring images of the 2008 presidential campaign, seems to think so.

In an interview appearing in this month’s Angelino magazine, Fairey says the president he helped elect is “not pushing hard enough.”
“I had a lot of hope for Obama, but it’s not panning out,” he says.
Obama’s popularity ratings at the end of May fell to a new low, according to the weekly polling data of Gallup.

Obama’s approval rating was at 46 percent. That compares with 77 percent in May of the second year for George W. Bush and 51 percent for Bill Clinton.

The Pew Research Center has asked Americans several times what one word describes their impression of Obama.

In September 2008 and February 2009, “hope” and “hopeful” were among the top 10 answers. In April 2009 they slipped to the 15th-ranked spot, and by January of this year “hopeful” was No. 34, behind “communist,” “arrogant” and “disappointing.”

Just a side not from this article: approval ratings aren’t the same thing as popularity. And my understanding (from last I heard, but I might not be up-to-date on it) is that his approval ratings may be low, but he still polls as being popular amongst many Americans.

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It always ticks me off when this “artist” gets publicity.

Look up “Shepard Fairey” + “plagiarism” and you’ll discover that all of said artwork is STOLEN.

While there are talented artists out there struggling to eat, this guy is getting expensive exhibitions because he traced a freaking magazine photo.

Please ignore this jerk and support artists who actually have a conscience.

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@john smith said: “Bush kills a million people in Iraq “

Another crazy whacked out LYING FOOL!

Next!

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Bush kills a million people in Iraq, but the picture of Obama is a problem.. yeah, sure Obama must be a commie. And he’s not just the other puppet for the 1% that rules america… riiiight. tell you what people. _Nothing_ changed under “communist” Clinton and NOTHING’s gonna change under “communist” Obama. Except that you still dont understand a thing about who rules you.

try this on

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGPH4htkDWM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqDXPPLCftg

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To appropriate and modify a comment from earlier in this thread:

“Cult-like worship of the leader has long been a staple of…” the American people.

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It was a brilliant memorable image – along with the Obama logo – that has been copied and parodied. That’s an ad-man’s dream. Lots of politicians use images and slogans to get their message across. What was McCain’s memorable image/slogan again? Um…pitbull & lipstick?

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@Jay:

If you want to know what I mean by that then scroll up to the examples in the actual post.

There are dozens of others that I could point out as well.

Nowhere in US history will you find a leader or event depicted in the fashion of Soviet or communist art. It’s never been done.

If you have examples to show, then post them.

As of now, you haven’t found any that are comparable.

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Aye C:

Your assertion is based on some common understanding of what is “reminiscent of that [mode of portraying political candidates] which was used in Socviet bloc countries” … but what do YOU mean by that?

I suggest examining the history of American art much more closely … from Washington Crossing the Deleware … to this, of Ronald Reagan:

http://originaldo.com/ronald-reagan-mountain.jpg

ALL political candidates are depicted as grand champions … right?

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@Jay:

No other candidate in US history has ever been portrayed in artwork reminiscent of that which was used in Soviet bloc countries.

It’s never happened. Until now.

Even the examples you cited don’t fit that template.

What was your point again?

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Hmmm. This blog entry and most responses seem to ignore the obvious that ALL political leaders present themselves as monolithic. Not just from the left; not just from the right.

If you look at campaign posters for candidates from the Democratic ticket or the Republican ticket in the United States, all are presented as icons – flat, two-dimensional, signifiers of confidence, strength, wisdom … all the “values” a nation wishes to embody.

Take a look at these campaign posters for the following Republican Presidential candidates:

Nixon: http://www.4president.org/nixon72poster.gif
Reagan: http://www.posters57.com/images/categories/1980_Reagan.jpg
McCain: http://images.johnmccain.com/images/posters/06_large.jpg

Both sides present their candidates as the nation’s saviour for whatever the current ills. And each side bashes, insults, ridicules the opposition.

No side is good as this nation over-simplifies multifaceted issues (like the economy, geopolitics, abortion, etc.) with either/or thinking. We all ought to demand well-rounded reasoning from our elected officials … not catch-phrase answers to complex problems.

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