Jon McNaughton is an American artist and Republican. He is known for his paintings depicting American conservative political figures, in particular prominent

Republicans Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, and

Christian imagery Christian symbolism is the use of symbols, including archetypes, acts, artwork or events, by Christianity. It invests objects or actions with an inner meaning expressing Christian ideas. The symbolism of the early Church was characterized by bei ...

. He subsequently launched an anti-establishment artistic line advocating for a regime change.

Career

McNaughton is from

Provo, Utah Provo ( ) is the fourth-largest city in Utah, United States. It is south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the largest city and county seat of Utah County and is home to Brigham Young University (BYU). Provo lies between the ...

, and studied art at

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

. After graduating, he worked in finance for eight years, planning on saving up money before working in art full time. His early work mainly dealt with landscapes, and religious and Mormon-related subjects, which over time moved towards right-wing politics. He painted his first political artworks during the

2008 US presidential election The 2008 United States presidential election was the 56th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 4, 2008. The Democratic ticket of Barack Obama, the junior senator from Illinois, and Joe Biden, the senior senator from ...

, and then came to prominence in 2009 during the

Obama presidency Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. A Democrat from Illinois, Obama took office following a decisive victory over Republican n ...

, when he started painting more conservative-leaning political scenes. In 2012,

Rachel Maddow Rachel Anne Maddow (, ; born April 1, 1973) is an American television news program host and liberal political commentator. Maddow hosts ''The Rachel Maddow Show'', a weekly television show on MSNBC, and serves as the cable network's special eve ...

's blog used his work '' The Forgotten Man'' as a

caption contest A caption contest or caption competition is a competition between multiple participants, who are required to give the best description for a certain image offered by the contest organizer. Rules and information about the competition process are also ...

, which led to an increase in sales for McNaughton.

Reception

His work has been described as " Christian nationalist" by Andrew Seidel of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, "kitsch realist", and as a middle ground between

realism Realism, Realistic, or Realists may refer to: In the arts *Realism (arts), the general attempt to depict subjects truthfully in different forms of the arts Arts movements related to realism include: *Classical Realism *Literary realism, a move ...

and

impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating ...

. Alissa Wilkinson in '' Vox'' described McNaughton as the "single most famous pro-Trump artist", and

Monica Hesse Monica Hesse is a national bestselling author from Normal, Illinois. She is the recipient of the Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Mystery for her book ''Girl in the Blue Coat'', and the Society for Feature Journalism's Narrative Storytelling awar ...

described him as "one of the most significant painters of the current era". Commentators, including Ben Davis and Jennifer Greenhill, professor of art history at

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

, have said that his work is primarily designed for "digital consumption", and highlighted the links between his paintings and internet memes and internet culture. His artworks often

go viral Viral phenomena or viral sensation are objects or patterns that are able to replicate themselves or convert other objects into copies of themselves when these objects are exposed to them. Analogous to the way in which viruses propagate, the ter ...

. Others, such as Greenhill and Andrew O'Hehir in ''

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon (P ...

'', have highlighted how McNaughton's knowledge of

art history Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

allows him to use famous historical paintings to complement his messages. Ben Davis has described McNaughton's art as "always ... mediocre", and as "highly functional memes". He further compared McNaughton to religious artist

Harry Anderson Harry Laverne Anderson (October 14, 1952 – April 16, 2018) was an American actor, comedian and magician. He is best known for his role of Judge Harry Stone on the 1984–1992 television series '' Night Court''. He later starred in the ...

, and wrote that although many Twitter users think that McNaughton's artwork is to " trigger the libs", McNaughton is trying to represent an honestly held viewpoint by some

Trump supporter Trumpism is a term for the political ideologies, social emotions, style of governance, political movement, and set of mechanisms for acquiring and keeping control of power associated with Donald Trump and his political base. ''wikt:Trumpist ...

s. McNaughton himself stated that he doesn't intend to "trigger liberals", but rather "to inspire". His work is often criticized by "coastal critics" and other liberals in the US, including Stephen Colbert and

Jerry Saltz Jerry Saltz (born February 19, 1951, in Chicago, Illinois) is an American art critic. Since 2006, he has been senior art critic and columnist for '' New York'' magazine. Formerly the senior art critic for ''The Village Voice'', he received the Pu ...

. Steve Rose in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', while describing ''The Forgotten Man'', identified McNaughton's work in the tradition of

Norman Rockwell Norman Percevel Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) was an American painter and illustrator. His works have a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of Culture of the United States, the country's culture. Roc ...

. Rose went on to say that McNaughton's art "provokes derision and parody more than outrage". John McDonald in ''

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...

'' described McNaughton's work as "pure propaganda", and went on to say that it provokes "similar feeling of self-satisfaction that grips liberal-minded viewers ... looking at a work that celebrates a

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

or anti-racist position".

Personal life

McNaughton is married, a devout member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and went on a mission for his faith to Japan in his youth. In the

2016 Republican Party presidential primaries Presidential primaries and caucuses of the Republican Party took place within all 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and five U.S. territories between February 1 and June 7, 2016. These elections selected the 2,472 delegates that were se ...

, McNaughton supported

Ted Cruz Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States Senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz served as Solicitor General of Texas from ...

, and following Trump's victory, described himself as a "Trump observer" instead of a supporter.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McNaughton, Jon Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Painters from Utah Brigham Young University alumni Latter Day Saints from Utah Latter Day Saint artists Artists from Provo, Utah Political artists

Career

Reception

Personal life

See also

References

External links