Friday Photos: The Image is the Message

Carole Lombard

The other day I was talking with an aspiring screenwriter about great film actors. I mentioned Clark Gable, Joan Crawford, Cary Grant, Bette Davis, Audrey Hepburn, John Wayne, Kirk Douglas, and Marilyn Monroe. The aspiring screenwriter, a young woman, told me that she’d heard of them, seen a lot of their photos on the internet, but had “never actually watched any of their movies.”

I probed further and discovered that in spite of not screening any of these actors’ films, the aspiring screenwriter had formed definite impressions of these “old actors.” Clark Gable was a “real he-man,” Cary Grant “delicious,” Audrey Hepburn “definitely sweet”, John Wayne “that cowboy guy,” and Marilyn Monroe “unbelievably beautiful but like totally tragic.”

It seems to me that national elections follow the same principal. Through fleeting visual glimpses and disconnected bits of information the public gains a strong impression of a candidate, and that image determines what happens in the voting booth — at least for the low-information voter.

Republicans are, by nature and ideology, wedded to the idea of experience as a necessary prerequisite for public office. We talk about a candidate’s fine record as a pro-business office-holder. Or we delve into the amazing personal history of Marco Rubio, or Ben Carson, their up-from-the-bootstraps American success story, and expect rational voters will also be carried along by these inspirational narratives.

But as the aspiring screenwriter’s knowledge of movie acting begins with the cast of Seinfeld and ends with Channing Tatum, many citizens fixate on an ahistorical image. Barack Obama had no record at all. But he had a trim figure, a generous smile, custom made Brooks Bros. suits, and a skin pigment that translated into an image of glamour that was hugely appealing to the American public.

Aware of the importance of image, Hillary Clinton regularly goes under the knife which deducts about 20-years worth of wrinkles and sagging skin from her face. Her dumpy pant suits translate into business attire for the busy gal. Vogue magazine, at the height of MonicaGate, understood that Hillary needed, um, work, and slapped her on the cover with a makeover that was, even by Vogue’s standards, insane.

Hillary gets the Vogue glamour treatment, 1998.

So: forget experience and accomplishments. The Republican who projects the right kind of glamour with a compelling personal narrative is the one who can beat Hillary. Her image is deeply compromised by her pay-for-play political operation disguised as a charity. And her severe lack of charm is becoming ever more apparent as she shleps her way through the initial stages of her presidential campaign.

Anyway, here are some images to enjoy over the weekend.

Self Portrait by Charlotte Salomon (1917 -1943). She was one of the most striking German Jewish artists of modern times. Her 769 autobiographical paintings are titled: “Life? or Theater?” She was gassed to death by the Germans probably on arrival at Auschwitz. She was five months pregnant.

Charlotte Salomon, “Kristallnacht” gouache on paper.

During WWII, Jews in Budapest were brought to the edge of the Danube, ordered to remove their shoes, and shot, falling into the water below. 60 pairs of iron shoes now line the river’s bank, a ghostly memorial to the victims. ‘Shoes on the Danube Promenade’ by Can Togay and Gyula Pauer.

Agnes Pelton, “White Fire” c.1930, Oil on canvas, 25.5 x 21

Norma Jeane Baker, 1930s.

Norma Jeane getting more comfortable in her skin and in front of the camera, 1940s.

Norma Jeane is gone. Marilyn Monroe in “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes,” 1954.

Ed Ruscha, “The Back of Hollywood” 1977. The extreme horizontal format and deeply saturated colors remind us of CinemaScope. But the famous Hollywood sign is seen from the back. Thus, the painting is imbued with nostalgia for Hollywood’s lost glamour.

Nancy Reagan with Mr. T. Take a look at her cute Christmas shoes.

Barcelona Haggadah, folio 43. The Barcelona Haggadah is one of the finest illuminated Hebrew manuscripts in The British Library. Written in about 1340 when Barcelona was home to a flourishing centre of manuscript illumination, the Haggadah is outstanding for the rich decorative and representational illuminations scattered throughout the text. Its fanciful figures, medieval musical instruments and pictorial scenes provide fascinating insights into Jewish life in medieval Spain.

Willem de Kooning, Untitled, 1983, oil on canvas

Rare Kodachrome of Ingrid Bergman, 1943

A wonderful portrait of Irene Dunne, she was a wonderful actress who was as adept in comedy as in drama. A Catholic, she remained married to one man and was never involved in a scandal. Her two best comedies are “My Favorite Wife” and “The Awful Truth.” Both with Cary Grant.

A wonderful portrait of Irene Dunne, a brilliant actress who was as adept at comedy as she was in drama. A Catholic, she remained married to one man her entire life, and was never involved in a scandal. Her two best films are screwball comedies, “The Awful Truth” (’37) and “My Favorite Wife” (’40) both with Cary Grant.

French poster for “My Favorite Wife”

This tablet is especially important because it records Nebuchadnezzar’s first capture of Jerusalem in 597 BC and the deportation to Babylon of the “king of Judah.”