Expression of Protest
John Nava’s new show, Neo-Icons, has been in the news and attracted threats primarily as the result of the reproduction of one painting titled “Signing Statement Law or An Alternate Set of Procedures.” In a spirit of understanding and rational inquiry, let us spend some time actually looking at this picture. It’s a portrait, and yet it is square-a disquieting proportion for portraiture, as the figure fills only the central third of the canvas, with the background stretching out on either side like the wings of a triptych.