American Humor - Peoples & Cultures, Political Humor, Political Cartoons

Philip Guston's Poor Richard

Name: Philip Guston's Poor Richard
Author: Debra Bricker Balken
ISBN: 9780226036212

by Debra Bricker Balken, Philip Guston

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Overview

In 1971, as the race for the presidency heated up, the artist Philip Guston (1913-1980) created a series of caricatures of Richard Nixon titled Poor Richard. Produced two years before Watergate and three years before Nixon's resignation, these condemnations of a corrupt head of state are remarkable, prescient political satire. The drawings mock Nixon's physical attributes - his nose is rendered as an enlarged phallus throughout - as well as his notoriously dubious, shifty character. This book is the first complete publication of these drawings.

Synopsis

In 1971, the artist Philip Guston (1913-1980) created this series of caricatures of Richard Nixon, now available for the first time in book form. Produced two years before Watergate and three years before Nixon's resignation, these provocative, searing condemnations of a corrupt head of state are both a remarkable, prescient political satire and an aesthetic landmark-one of few instances of an artist in the late twentieth century engaging caricature in his work.

About the Author, Debra Bricker Balken

Debra Bricker Balken is an independent curator and writer. She has assembled numerous exhibitions in the United States, including a retrospective of Arthur Dove's work at the Addison Gallery of American Art. She is the author of several books and catalogues, including Arthur Dove: A Retrospective and Alfredo Jaar: Lament of the Images.