Those who know, know.
PAINTED RIDDLE — NO. 2
"Restoring the Republic" was the second painting developed in this series. I have to admit, I expected JFK Jr. to return on July 4th, 2019. I was a little disappointed, like Charlie Brown waiting in the pumpkin patch for The Great Pumpkin to return, but I did not give up hope. As the year drew to a close, I said, "It is going to be next year at Mt. Rushmore!" and I wanted to paint a grand picture to tell that story before it happened!
I began to illustrate the American Story of President Kennedy and the life of his son John set against the epic figures of Mt. Rushmore, concluding with the current political scene of Trump rallies and Q. It's sort of a story within a story.
In this painting, the viewer's eye is drawn to the top left, the reddish curtain suggesting a theater curtain, but also a funeral bunting.
The sky is stormy. We see President Kennedy and the figures of his wife, Jacqueline, and his children, Caroline and John, descending the steps of St. Matthew's Church down to the funeral procession.
The Spirit of President Kennedy, in my opinion, continued to guide his son's footsteps and the bell from President Kennedy's sailboat is tolling "Where We Go One We Go All".
Following the timeline, we then see John and Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, her sister Lauren, and their fateful plane that fell into the Atlantic on a dark night off of Martha's Vineyard in 1999.
Now we get to the fun "mystery" part. John's dog, Friday, is pointing his nose up to a political poster, "Make America Great". The poster is over the heart of President Trump. President Trump is looking at President Lincoln, who held the office during another difficult time in American History. Directly over President Trump, in a peaceful Tiffany Blue sky, is the letter Q, formed by a wistful cloud and a white Dove of Peace.
Lastly, the eye is drawn to the curious man in the fedora holding up the poster. Who is that? And who are the other people? A wife? A cousin? Whose children?
This is an American Mystery besides American History. I will let you decide.