Michael D'Antuono's Art And Response

Washington Post – The Art of Change

Pic of Washington Post review of D.C. art exhibit Defining Change in the Age of Trump.

The Art of Change

After Charles Krause opened his gallery in 2011, he mounted shows of ideological and dissident art from earlier eras, much of it related to his former career as a reporter for The Washington Post and other outlets. But current events overtook the venue, recently transformed into the nonprofit Center for Contemporary Political Art. Its first exhibition, “Defining the Art of Change in the Age of Trump,” is heavy on breaking news.

Not all the more than 100 artworks directly address the current administration, but the show is not recommended for anyone suffering from Trump fatigue. And skillfully made as they are, such visual polemics probably won’t age well.

Satirical realist painter Michael D’Antuono depicts the presidents of the United States and Russia together on a rearing red, white and blue elephant, flanked by a palace guard of prominent Republicans. George Kennedy parodies Norman Rockwell’s four-freedoms illustration, interjecting Trump and his circle. Patricia Isaza uses real straw for the president’s hair in a fierce sculptural rendering. Kevin Champeny’s Trump portrait is made of hundreds of tiny plastic hands with upturned middle fingers.

Defining the Art of Change in the Age of Trump Through Nov. 14 at the Center for Contemporary Political Art, 916 G St. NW.