American Landscape with Revolutionary Heroes (work of art)

Ideas clave sobre esta obra de arte

• Roger Brown was one of the Chicago Imagists. This group of artists used bright colors, bold lines, and distorted shapes. Brown’s art was influenced by comic books, wallpaper patterns, and movie theater architecture. He was also inspired by folk art, naïve art, and art deco styles. Brown often used his art to comment on current events.
• This painting shows six American founding fathers: Alexander Hamilton, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, James Madison and John Marshall. They seem to be standing on a stage. The striped background and the 13 tree shapes remind us of the first American flag, which had a star for each of the 13 states. 
• The Founding Fathers helped to build the United States of America as a new country. They wrote documents like the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, to define how the government would work. They were the country’s first lawmakers and leaders. They believed that America should be based on ideas of freedom, equality, and democracy.
• The Founding Fathers lived and worked during the period of slavery in America. Many of them owned enslaved people. The government they built allowed slavery to continue for years to come. The title of Brown’s painting refers to these men as “heroes” and focuses on the positive things they did. It does not make reference to the darker side of America’s founding.

Más información

Brown’s self-consciously American style borrows from the popular culture traditions of comic books; flat, hypnotic patterns of wallpaper; and vivid creations of folk and surrealist art. Associated with the group of postwar artists known as the Chicago Imagists, Brown embraced fantasy and irreverence while engaging in social and political commentary.

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