UMVA Showcase – Spring 2025: Peter Buotte, Kenny Cole, Titi de Baccarat, André Benoit

Peter Buotte

To address the theme, In Times Like These, I offer Will He Escape? Yes . . . (2023–24) and Orange Mist (2024–).

Like two previous paintings Sinking Raft (2021) and Falls of Conspiracy (2022), Will He Escape? Yes . . . fuses the culture of spectacle and contemporary politics. Bulgarian-born illusionist Harry Houdini provides an excellent metaphor for Donald Trump’s escape from multiple legal issues. Houdini fascinated the public by elusively freeing himself from locks, chains, and containers. His water chamber act was a defining moment. Of note, Houdini’s “confiners” wore police uniforms to appear official; yet in fact, their procedures actually assisted his escape. This parallels Trump’s years-long legal appeals, delays, and grants of immunity.

For the composition, I use a collage of media-based digital images. This digital “sketch” is the foundation for the hand-rendered painting and continues to change during the process. The support is unprimed, unstretched, six-by-nine-foot drop-cloth canvas. The work is primarily in black, grays, and white with a few elements emphasized with color.

In the foreground:

• To the left is Phineas T. Barnum, the archetypal leader of a three-ring circus and carnival barker.
• In the center is the master illusionist Houdini. Though locked in chains, his act is now usurped by another one on center stage.
• To the right is former House of Representatives speaker Kevin McCarthy. As the chief deflector, he attempted to keep public attention on anything other than legal jeopardy. Trapped in Houdini’s milk container, McCarthy points to a color wheel of diversionary topics including COVID, Impeachment, Department of Justice, and Hunter Biden.

In the midground:

• The central figure is Trump, suspended by his ankles in a gold-plated water chamber.
• Alice in Wonderland holds a key which may assist in opening.
• Pinocchio is a known liar whose nose grows long. He dances, laughs, and points at a fellow liar.
• From left to right, Former Attorney General Merrick Garland, whose deliberate approach led an objective yet slow legal process.
• Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, whose civil lawsuit jury found Trump guilty of thirty-seven counts of felony.
• District Attorney Fani Willis, who initially prosecuted charges of conspiracy to influence Georgia state elections, yet instead found her personal life investigated.
• Former Special Counsel Jack Smith, an assertive federal prosecutor who led cases about stolen government documents and attempts to overthrow election results. He ultimately ran out of time due to defense appeals and repeated delays.

In the background:

• Judge Engeron, who led a civil lawsuit that found Trump guilty of decades of fraud.
• Attorney General Letitia James, who led fact-based lawsuits for the state of New York.
• The “Supremes,” nine Court Justices who ultimately offered an off-ramp of Immunity for all official presidential acts.
• On the left and right sides is a split portrait of Judge Aileen “Loose” Cannon, whose judgments clearly show partisanship and divided ethics.

Like my previous paintings, Orange Mist synthesizes history painting and contemporary politics. This canvas combines Winslow Homer’s 1899 painting Gulf Stream and the immediate effect of Trump’s re-election, 2025, and beyond. The support is an unstretched, six-by-nine-foot cotton US flag, upside-down to indicate “country in distress.”

Homer’s painting from 126 years ago is emblematic of US history and American culture. It explores themes of the power of the ocean, the relation of humans and nature, and the US (post-slavery). While these issues are still important, fast forward to today. For me, the more salient themes are human nature and the pursuit of abusive political power. Our country is facing a second round of far-right political chaos, power plays, normalized lying, increased marginalization and scapegoating, and highly questionable appointees.

In the foreground are:

• The US Constitution jettisoned and floating as a message in a bottle.
• A shark rendered as Homer did, yet reversed.
• A shark from the 1977 Jaws movie poster.
• Baby Shark, to please my three-year-old son.
• Hokusai’s 1831 image of The Great Wave, which also appeared in my painting Sinking Raft. 

In the midground:

• The boat from Homer’s original composition remains the center.
• In place of the African-American man is Uncle Sam, arms chained and bound. His face will be a disfigured blur à la Francis Bacon, as a symbol of a distorted democracy.
• My new character Trumper-Bell is floating above, wand in hand, releasing pixie dust and executive orders to magically solve all radical, Marxist, leftist “problems.” This is the newest visual element as of 7 February 2025.
• In place of the ropes on board, there are snakes from both the Gadsen and Navy Do Not Tread on Me flags, and the snake from the colonial Join or Die flag.
• Incoming from the left is a wrecking ball labeled “Musk” poised to dismantle the disheveled boat (This is another new element).
• Future flotsam will include pieces of wooden boat mast labeled USAID, Dept. of Education, FBI agents, NIH, FDA, CDC, and Gaza. More to arrive . . .
• Instead of Homer’s idea that humans are vulnerable to the forces of nature, this work suggests that democracy is vulnerable to narcissistic nationalism and slash-and-burn internal threats, where the Executive Branch is eviscerating government agencies that protect its own people.

In the background:

• A nautical compass is in the upper left corner. In place of typical N-S-E-W navigation, there are basic values to guide the leader of a functioning democracy. The central word Integrity is surrounded by Honesty, Fairness, Courage, Reliability, Humility, Reason, Compassion, and Discipline. The words are now backwards and upside-down, due to a demonstrated lack.
• Also in the upper left is a micro-copy of Emanuel Leutze’s 1851 painting, Washington Crossing the Delaware. It represents the starting point of the presidential lineage from one onward. The example of America’s Presidency following a moral compass is now clearly diminished.
• The biggest element in the background is an oncoming storm—the Orange Mist itself—which covers and affects all in its presence.

This new Administration is a travesty in process; this painting has more to come . . .

 

Kenny Cole

As we enter our new autocracy in the US, a government leaning heavily towards fascism, some might ask the question: how or why may this have happened? A simple Wikipedia search of “autocracy” and “fascism” provides all of the answers. Trump’s supporters have for years expressed the desire for a man of business or a dictator to run things in order to simplify and sidestep traditional governance or social engagement. Trump himself has successfully garnered blind support and loyalty. Red hats, the identifying apparel, eerily suggest a political uniform in the spirit of past far-right political movements, illustrating that while thinking about “our time”, today’s behavior really reflects parallels to common “timeless” human behaviors.

As an artist, sometimes it feels as though I am screaming into the void. I can’t seem to keep myself from engaging with things that are happening in “my time.” That history repeats itself adds a further level of frustration. This current work then, has provided me with a bit of catharsis and perspective. Among my collection of art materials are a dozen or so vintage newspapers that I have acquired over the years, often through renovation projects on old houses. In the lead up to the 2024 presidential election my level of anxiety reached a point where my time in the studio was very distracted, so I decided to clean up and there uncovered my lost stash of vintage newspapers. Looking through news stories and wood cut advertisements from the late 1800s, I began to experience that timeless sense of human activity and struggle and the advances of technology. I then conceived of work that takes into consideration longer stretches of time, greater histories of conflict and linkages of action/reaction, and ultimately the rise and fall of power structures. With multiple decades of vintage newspapers to clip from, I decided to create singular images that would reflect contemporary concerns using vintage imagery.

As the election revealed a choice by the American public to embrace the belief that our society’s best moment was in the past and that our focus should be to regain that footing, I imagined my collages as a form of cyclical human behavior, an undercurrent of current events, all depicted as a nightmarish mash-up of old and new.

Thinking of the linguistic evolution of the MAGA acronym, I heard in my mind the phrase Gog and Magog, sensing that it must be biblical and wondering if its narrative could have any relationship to our current state. The many narratives found in the Wikipedia analysis qualified it perfectly for what I now saw as a possible new series for me to explore, arising from the cataclysms of 2023 into 2024 and the newly branded societal pathway guided by nostalgia, faith and belief. MAGA on steroids would be G.A.G. & M.A.G.A.A.A.A.A.A.A.G.A. and I invite one and all to interpret the acronym as they please, taking the biblical and cultural narratives of Gog and Magog into account, along with the idea that we often needlessly act in predictably poor ways again and again and again and again!

 

Titi de Baccarat

It is natural to be afraid, and from this fear, courage is born. How can we dream in color when people wake up under a state of emergency? We no longer count the orphans or the bullets lost in children’s chests. How many infants are under the rubble, how many entire families have been decimated by bombs in Palestine? Systemic injustices and the targeting of marginalized groups, such as African diasporas who face discrimination worldwide, are daily realities.

The intense debates around the state of democracy and the spread of misinformation through social media have complicated our understanding of key issues. They plunge us into a complex emotional state, reinforcing feelings of despair and uncertainty. A deep sense of anxiety, fear, but also resilience persists. It’s as if the governments of the world are playing the game of division, commerce, and terror. Marginalized people seem to be walking backward toward past wounds, with generational traumas deeply rooted in their blood, body, and soul.

To understand the present, we must understand where history begins. There are parallels between contemporary problems and historical atrocities. Denying these parallels is an attempt to erase history; and erasing history is to refuse its repair. The visceral impact of current social upheavals is intrinsically linked to the tragic legacy of unjust decisions made under the capitalist model by policies that seek to impose their societal scheme on humanity. Because I am neither blind, deaf, nor mute, I will not be complicit in silence when injustice is blatant. To remain silent is sometimes to condone violence and lawlessness.

Fortunately, there are people who fight for change, for peace, and for justice. I can only salute their courage and sincerity. As a human being, I am obliged to take a stand; therefore, I call for mobilization for greater community life to increase the sense of community and solidarity.

In this time of uncertainty, there is an urgent need for solidarity to overcome societal fractures. We must collectively reflect on how we, as individuals and communities, can address the challenges of our time and work towards a more harmonious world. It is time to engage in this conversation with courage, honesty, and imagination.

We must hold the mirror and ask ourselves: “What do we see?” Look to the future and ask ourselves: “What do I feel?” Then translate all this into an art of living that resonates, questions and endures. My heart is anchored in historical consciousness, but my reason is motivated by present realities. The violent conflicts in North Kivu (DRC) and the devastating effects of climate change exacerbate the suffering of vulnerable populations. I always hope to see peace in justice rise on the horizon .

I continue to create works of art to shed light on those treated as strangers in their own country, those who have been dispossessed, stolen from, and whose most fundamental rights have been violated. Through my art, I try to juxtapose dreams and hopes against a backdrop of a dark future and ongoing struggles. Art is not only an aesthetic quest but a powerful tool to rally people around a common cause and incite them to action.

 

André Benoit

In 2022, I was given a collection of shaped wooden pieces collected over lifetimes by two Maine assemblers/sculptors, Ann Slocum and Bernice Rosenthal. Many seemed perfect as component pieces of work I envisioned creating to represent my reaction to the indefensible aggression and destruction in Ukraine and the purposeful targeting of civilians and their infrastructure. Russia underestimated the country’s resolve to resist.

These artworks and others, representing the inhumanity of the Russian agenda, were exhibited in the past at the Maine Jewish Museum in Portland and at the Holocaust and Human Rights Center in Augusta. It grieves me that our current administration seems to be unmoved by what the Ukrainians have suffered.

Russian Atrocities in Ukraine depicts Russian ordinances in the sky over Ukraine raining down on a city with the Z insignia that was so often seen displayed on invading Russian military vehicles. Russians targeted civilians, their infrastructure and their sanctums of inner strength—orthodox places of religious worship.

Little Left Standing is a depiction of a bombed out building and the city behind composed of antique blocks.

A Plea to the Humane World is a plea for aid and political support from NATO countries. Our current administration is withdrawing from supporting this most fundamental need of the Ukrainians.

In Violation of Rules of Engagement is an homage to Picasso’s Massacre in Korea, his anti-war painting produced during the Korean War. My adaptation of his image was to depict a tank representing Putin running over a Ukrainian villager.