Bicentennial Bandwagon
Date1976
MediumScreenprint on paper
DimensionsImage: 26 5/8 × 34 3/4 inches (67.6 × 88.3 cm)
Sheet: 26 5/8 × 34 3/4 inches (67.6 × 88.3 cm)
Matted: 32 × 40 inches (81.3 × 101.6 cm)
Portfolio/SeriesKent Bicentennial portfolio, "Spirit of Independence"
Credit LineGift of Lorillard, a Division of Loew’s Theatres, Inc.
Object number1977.17
Copyright© Red Grooms, Member of Artists Rights Society (ARS)
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Label TextHighly stylized in a cartoonish manner distinct to the work of Pop artist Red Grooms, 'Bicentennial Bandwagon' offers a critical interpretation of the 200th anniversary of the United States. Featuring a football player in high heels bicycling across a tightrope; Betsy Ross sewing the flag; King George and a typecast Native American on either side of a cracked Liberty Bell; and an African American man driving the bandwagon with the motley crew, the work appropriates well-known symbols of America, but exaggerates and distorts them in a menacing manner. The fireworks in the sky suggest napalm, and a sinister feeling pervades the festive atmosphere. The sincerity of the words “EQUALITY” and “PLENTY” is challenged by the chaotic scene.
