The Unmaking of a President, Walter Bernard

Artwork Overview

Walter Bernard, The Unmaking of a President
Walter Bernard, The Unmaking of a President
Walter Bernard
The Unmaking of a President
circa 1964
Walter Bernard
born 1937
The Unmaking of a President, circa 1964
Where object was made: United States
Material/technique: photograph; pen; collage; board; ink
Dimensions:
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 36.9 x 25.7 cm
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 50.6 x 38 cm
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 14 1/2 x 10 1/8 in
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 19 15/16 x 14 15/16 in
Mat Dimensions (Height x Width): 20 x 16 in
Credit line: Gift of Esquire, Inc.
Accession number: 1980.0685
Not on display
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Images

Label texts

Power Clashing: Clothing, Collage, and Contemporary Identities
This print originally appeared in a November 1964 issue of Esquire magazine, accompanied by an article discussing then-presidential hopeful Richard Nixon’s failure to secure the Republican nomination. Nixon’s loss to Barry Goldwater was seen at the time as a career-ending defeat. Bernard depicts Nixon in the pose of a polished statesman, smiling and waving to a crowd in the customary power suit of politicians. Beneath this professional outer appearance, the body of Nixon, composed of the same scaffolded structures that make up the convention stage, is being dismantled. Although Nixon would go on to win the 1968 presidential election, Bernard’s work foreshadows his later impeachment in the aftermath of the Watergate scandal.
Power Clashing: Clothing, Collage, and Contemporary Identities
This print originally appeared in a November 1964 issue of Esquire magazine, accompanied by an article discussing then-presidential hopeful Richard Nixon’s failure to secure the Republican nomination. Nixon’s loss to Barry Goldwater was seen at the time as a career-ending defeat. Bernard depicts Nixon in the pose of a polished statesman, smiling and waving to a crowd in the customary power suit of politicians. Beneath this professional outer appearance, the body of Nixon, composed of the same scaffolded structures that make up the convention stage, is being dismantled. Although Nixon would go on to win the 1968 presidential election, Bernard’s work foreshadows his later impeachment in the aftermath of the Watergate scandal.

Exhibitions

Brosseau Center for Learning: Nixon and The Seventies
2023
Power Clashing: Clothing, Collage, and Contemporary Identities
Samantha Lyons, curator
2017