Fans of traditional art heard the name Jon McNaughton frequently in 2019, largely because his boldly stylized work depicting President Trump, “Crossing the Swamp,” went viral on Twitter. The painting, in which Trump is directing a boat across the swamp (an allusion to Washington, D.C.), has the same profound meaning as the painting “George Washington Crossing the Delaware,” which hangs in New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art and is a tribute to the latter.
“It just hits a nerve with some people,” McNaughton jokingly told The Epoch Times, and it’s exactly what got him noticed.
Painting of “Crossing the Swamp. (Courtesy of Jon McNaughton)
McNaughton has been painting professionally since high school and has been involved in political art for nearly a decade. Since the Trump Administration in 2017, he has been a voice for the pro-American movement.
Saying goodbye to the turbulent year 2020, the painter is optimistic about the new year and hopes his work can “serve as a light” in the confusing times, sharing his predictions for after Trump leaves the White House.
McNaughton recently completed a pencil sketch of Trump and quoted Trump’s Jan. 19 quote, “It’s just beginning,” saying, “Whether he [Trump] is president or not, he’s going to be against those swamps.
The “It’s just beginning” painting. (Courtesy of Jon McNaughton)
He went on to say, “2020 is the year that Trump really shows his inner strength, from impeachment to the new crown virus,” and “I’m amazed at the trials and tribulations he’s going through, and it feels like the world is against him.”
McNaughton also expressed his respect for Trump, “But he just doesn’t give up, and that’s what I appreciate about him. I believe a lot of Americans are like that, we all don’t give up.”
Talking about his recent work, the artist said he has published a number of works in the last year, with each painting taking anywhere from a few weeks to two months to create, and some works still in progress.
Legacy of Hope” painting. (Courtesy of Jon McNaughton)
Last year, McNaughton created the painting Legacy of Hope. He depicted Trump surrounded by prominent figures in American history – George Washington, Harriet Tubman (an American abolitionist), Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, John F. Kennedy, and Frederick Douglass (an American abolitionist). These celebrities either caressed him or prayed for him. The artist was inspired to create the picture when he saw a group of conservative blacks visiting the White House and praying around Trump’s desk during the violent riots across America that day.
Legacy of Hope” (Legacy of Hope) is very popular, “President Trump really brings hope to a lot of people who support him” and he is hopeful for the future, McNaughton said.
Another of the artist’s paintings, You Are Fake News, was also well-received, taking its title from Trump’s classic televised speech and humorously showing Trump meeting with the press dressed as clowns on the White House lawn, with Marine One in the background.
The You Are Fake News painting. (Courtesy of Jon McNaughton)
“My intention in creating the painting was to leave a picture of the era from which future generations can look back and appreciate the meaning of conservatism.” McNaughton said.
In our online meeting with the artist, we asked McNaughton desperately if he still had a hand in hiding, and he said it was a work that hadn’t been published and was awaiting copyright approval and was being kept secret for the Time being. He said mischievously, “There are still a lot of works like that, and I’m going to hide them in the vault so that when I bring them out again in 50 years they’ll be a hit.”
As for future prospects, McNaughton will keep his creative juices flowing and his mind open. He has been thinking about taking on the theme of the Second Amendment, which has been mentioned in previous works such as Stand Your Ground and Take a Stand. He also chooses themes that he thinks are important, such as freedom, rights, the Constitution, etc.
Painting of The Forgotten Man. (Courtesy of Jon McNaughton)
McNaughton’s most famous work is The Forgotten Man, created in the context of the passage of the Obama health Care Act in 2010. The painting was purchased by famed newscaster Sean Hannity and even appeared on his show. The image depicts presidents and then-presidents, some revering the Constitution, others showing profanity, and the man representing the American people sitting in a chair looking dejected and forgotten.
The painter says that he admires masters of painting who also paint current political themes, such as Francesco de Goya. He also created a similar work in imitation of Goya’s “The Third of May,” but unlike Goya’s execution of rebels by Spanish soldiers, he painted Antifa elements burning the American flag and threatening conservatives.
“The Resistance” painting. (Courtesy of Jon McNaughton)
McNaughton also admired Leonardo da Vinci and American realist painter Norman Rockwell, and like the prolific painter, his own name is becoming a household word.
The painter says, “I think in another 50 years, 100 years, people will look at my work and think, ‘That’s when this happened to our country.'”
McNaughton believes the country will be in a “whirlwind of madness” in 2021, and he wants to use the art form to express how people feel. “For the people who buy my paintings, it’s an expression of how people feel about the state of the country. That’s my focus, to do the best I can and to keep fighting.”
Jon McNaughton in the studio. (Courtesy of Jon McNaughton)
To see more of McNaughton’s work, please visit: https://www.mcnaughtonfreebook.com/2020
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