Obama is visually viral. When driving to the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, I passed this iteration of the Obama poster, left, painted on the side of a building. I'm just now getting to post this as I work through things after being gone from Santa Fe for days and days. While I was in Texas, the tv had the pope on everywhere that day I spotted Obama painted on the yellow bricks and a parody of the pope, right, in the style of Shepard Fairey's now famous Obama Poster was circulating.
Looking at political communications, visually, in with media studies this week, the visuals that stand out among the loud blabbering on cable and in the blogosphere during this pivotal and perhaps most decisive political week are most indicative of all.
I've pulled these Obama Poster parody iterations to show how the fight was playing out with reiterations of Fairey's graphic. The poster in print has gone viral, as I knew it would when I wrote Political Art and the Power of Visual Images.
One of my favorite recent political quotes early on in the week (just so we're not totally visual) is by James Carville, commenting on Hillary and Obama: "If she gave one of her cajones to him, they'd both have two." ha.ha. Seriously, I am highly entertained by the visuals by artists and photographers rather than the comments of the punditry. Soundbites and snippets are what we're about, socially and culturally.
The visuals tell the story so I will give you the two oppositional favorites of mine from this week with the leading Hillary graphic on 5/8 from The Drudge Report, right, which ran just above a headline, "No Way" juxtaposed with this week's Time magazine, just out, with the relaxed smiling Obama with the huge headlline, "And The Winner* Is..."
Back in September 07, I thought Hillary had the edge, as I wrote in Hillary Pop Iconic: Leading by Visual Image.
The tide shifted w/ the Obama poster. If you look at graphic imagery as produced, reiterated and shared online, Obama's fans are winning creatively. This shift occurred in early April. I found the Mamas for Obama graphic for sale on a t-shirt you can buy on Zazzle.com. Me, I'm just following the art and media for political communications interests and digging deep on issues in order to make up my mind.
On another media note, Webby Awards have been announced and CyberJournalist reports results (and, no surprise, WashingtonPost is sliding online, and my once very online with it local paper, The Santa Fe New Mexican, is falling way behind w/ online trends):
*Multiple winners such as: NYTimes.com (8); The Onion (7); National Geographic (4); FactCheck.org (3); BBC (3); TESPN.com (3); and CondeNet (3).
* 27 sites won both a Webby Award and a People’s Voice Award including: Huffington Post (Blog-Political), PostSecret (Blog-Cultural), FT.com Alphaville (Blog-Business), National Geographic (Magazine), NYTimes.com (Newspaper), FactCheck.org (Politics).
Related:
Obama & Clinton: Connecting
Hillary Leading (used to be) by Iconic Representation
latest: Hottest Political Art for the Presidential Campaign
Fascinating! And those black and white shots of Hilary...I work with someone just like that.
Posted by: Musing | May 10, 2008 at 06:17 AM
I love the shot of Obama on the front of Time...he looks so open and real. I knew, when he started running, that for some he would be too black, and for some he would be too white. I knew they would pick him to death...and maybe he had to toughen up; after all, he would have to be the MAN to make that call at 3a.m. should it come. But, he has had a baptism of fire. I hope he doesn't lose sight of his dream. I hope he can carry forward with the Martin Luther King way of thinking. The Nelson Mandela way of thinking. I think he is, on his worst day, a better choice than Hillary. I was raised Republican and every one in my family is Republican. I loved it when Obama was on a roll and everyone had the new, fresh bandwagon energy of before Rev. Wright. One would have thought it was the second coming! That bandwagon was so enticing with Caroline Kennedy standing up there and quoting JFK. I admire McCain for the person he is. I revere his service to our country and praise his image as a previous prisoner of war during my error, as I watched on TV as the prisoners were coming home finally. I think our country is in a mess, and I want change. I am more interested in fixing America than Iraq. Having said that, I support our military and our kids over there but can't bear to see another flag draped coffin of our brightest and best. I even don't completely blame Bush for our problems. I will give him that. But, I want change. Do I think Obama can bring change?...I'd like to give him a chance. Do I think he can beat McCain? Don't know? Will I be sick if McCain gets in? No, I think is he is fine man...but something's gotta give. I am part of the middle class and I am feeling the pinch. Anyone feeling it?
Posted by: carron e. | May 10, 2008 at 12:38 PM
p.s. LOVE the Obama print with arugula "available at Whole Foods...that's a store, you ignorant hicks!" Mercy...that is cold ! Not him, but I like it...think it is hysterical.
Posted by: carron e. | May 10, 2008 at 12:44 PM
Hmm. What about the use of red and blue? Can he unite us all, red-staters and blue staters?
I think you are right that this has been a campaign of images.
Posted by: Hattie | May 11, 2008 at 03:11 PM
Love these posters -- they have this vintagey-all American feel to them that says "summertime."
And I especially love the catchy little phras: Mamas for Obama. That is genius.
Posted by: susiej | May 11, 2008 at 03:27 PM