Existing comment:
Nixon
c. 1985
Bronze
Richard Nixon (1913-1994) served as President from 1969 until he resigned from office on August 9, 1974 due to his role in the Watergate scandal. Here, in what is thought to be his first sculpture, Oliphant renders Nixon as a three-quarter figure, his shoulders hunched as he raised his arms to make his characteristic double V for victory salute, very likely caricaturing the final AP photograph of Nixon as president on the top step of the presidential helicopter.
Long after his presidency, caricatures of Nixon continued to haunt Oliphant's sketchbooks and daily cartoons as a symbol of political corruption. At Nixon's death on April 22, 1994, Oliphant's sketchbook noted the event with a caricature with this same pose, which he captioned, "It Just Won't Be The Same." |