OBAMA COVER FOR THE NATION MAG (By A Kos Diarist!)

[kpete]

MY OBAMA COVER FOR THE NATION MAG!!!
by johnmav
Thu Jan 15, 2009 at 02:38:15 AM PST

I am so thrilled to announce that my cover art is featured on the brand new issue of America's longstanding liberal voice, The Nation magazine! It's an idea I've been planning for the better part of six months and I've been drawing it for the past three months... Image and explanation below the fold...
idea was Barack Obama being sworn into office, surrounded by civil rights figures from history. I then thought it would be appropriate to have the late, great Thurgood Marshall do the honors. I then expanded the idea to include civil rights of all kinds (Chief Joseph, Cesar Chavez, Ghandi, Mandela and Biko, Susan B Anthony, Harvey Milk, etc.)... Of course, it can't be all-encompassing. There's not enough pages to accommodate everyone who has helped bring about this wonderful moment. But I wanted to include as many deserving figures as possible. I had my personal favorites: King, Malcolm X, Barbara Jordan, Chief Joseph, Stephen Biko, Henry David Thoreau... many well-known figures appear, but along this journey I found a lot of others that I didn't know too much about... Bayard Rustin, Fred Shuttleworth, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, William Still, Thomas Garrett and Samuel Burris.

more at:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/1/15/43419/2576/171/684280

[maddezmom]

1. Outstanding!

K&R

[Hope And Change]

2. K & R!Thanks for posting!

[onehandle]

3. Very few of those people will be there.

I think some of them are dead.

[DrZeeLit]

33. No... they WILL be present -- in many ways Obama embodies each and every one.

Are those the 3 little girls from the church fire?
I always cry when I think about that tragedy.

Everyone who died to move Civil Rights further along the way, contributed to where we are today.
And thus stands Barack Obama.

And may perpetual light shine upon them.
Amen.

[Ken Burch]

53. Those are the four little girls

And I'll post the song Richard Farina wrote in their memory, for those who haven't heard it.

BIRMINGHAM SUNDAY

Come round by my side and I'll sing you a song.
I'll sing it so softly, it'll do no one wrong.
On Birmingham Sunday the blood ran like wine,
And the choirs kept singing of Freedom.

That cold autumn morning no eyes saw the sun,
And Addie Mae Collins, her number was one.
At an old Baptist church there was no need to run.
And the choirs kept singing of Freedom,

The clouds they were grey and the autumn winds blew,
And Denise McNair brought the number to two.
The falcon of death was a creature they knew,
And the choirs kept singing of Freedom,

The church it was crowded, but no one could see
That Cynthia Wesley's dark number was three.
Her prayers and her feelings would shame you and me.
And the choirs kept singing of Freedom.

Young Carol Robertson entered the door
And the number her killers had given was four.
She asked for a blessing but asked for no more,
And the choirs kept singing of Freedom.

On Birmingham Sunday a noise shook the ground.
And people all over the earth turned around.
For no one recalled a more cowardly sound.
And the choirs kept singing of Freedom.

The men in the forest they once asked of me,
How many black berries grew in the Blue Sea.
And I asked them right with a tear in my eye.
How many dark ships in the forest?

The Sunday has come and the Sunday has gone.
And I can't do much more than to sing you a song.
I'll sing it so softly, it'll do no one wrong.
And the choirs keep singing of Freedom.

-Words Richard Farina, tune English traditional.

Here's a link to Joan Baez singing the song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQ0y-vO9QLE
(note: there's a silence on the video for the first minute or two, then Baez starts singing)

[Hekate]

59. It's been ages since I've listened to this great song. Damn, I do remember that day...

"On Birmingham Sunday a noise shook the ground... For no one recalled a more cowardly sound." Joan Baez's pure soprano is perfect for the task.

There have been -- surprising to me -- some rather repressive folks here at DU. One wants the Inaugural celebrations cancelled and the money used for good works. Another wants us to stop calling Obama a black man because not only is he half-white, but we *should* be color-blind in our perceptions--that to observe his color and note his place in history is to somehow diminish the *real* reason we voted for him, i.e. that he was the best candidate.

For some of us this moment in time is priceless in its confluence of events. Priceless.

Hekate

[awoke_in_2003]

57. The third girl...

(starting from the left) looks like Carole Robertson, so I would say yes:


The boy in the hat in front of Marshall is Emmitt Till:

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

34. You're kidding.

Did Abraham Lincoln die and nobody told me?

[Ken Burch]

54. Well, yeah, but he hadn't been well lately...

n/t.

[nc4bo]

4. Congratulations!!! Beautiful work johnmav! nt

[islandmkl]

5. is the right foreground the victims of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing?

Addie Mae Collins (aged 14), Denise McNair (aged 11), Carole Robertson (aged 14), and Cynthia Wesley (aged 14) were all killed on September 15, 1963 when members of the KKK bombed the church in Birmingham, Alabama.

[MikeNearMcChord]

10. Yes and the young man on ths bottom and to the left of Thurgood Marshall is

Emmitt Till. Who was lynched in Mississippi at the age of 14.

[Cetacea]

6. Great work! Recommending.

[pinto]

7. kick

:kick:

[chill_wind]

8. Fantastic! K & R. n/t

[peacetalksforall]

9. Fabulous. Wonderfully appropriate. This is to be framed.

[Dennis Donovan]

11. This takes my breath away...

Recommended!:patriot:

On edit: I just noticed Emmett Till and the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing girls.:cry:

[lunatica]

12. I see Sojourner Truth! And is that Harriet Tubman?

I love that cover!

[pleah]

13. K&R Cool!

[tabatha]

14. Excellent.

I can find Ghandi, but not Mandela, Biko.

[dixiegrrrrl]

15. Major kudos. You deserve to be so proud!

Very imaginative;, and lots of hard work, well worth it.
One of many DUer treasures, I might add.


:applause: :applause: :applause: :applause:

[dixiegrrrrl]

16. Is the issue out now?

or when?

[gblady]

17. very, very cool....

what a wonderfully inspirational picture....
I will get a copy of this for sure.

[Kahuna]

18. Beautiful. What a cool poster that would make.

:kick:

[FrenchieCat]

19. Please have the artist make this into a poster, and PM me so that I can purchase it!

and frame it, and place it in my hubby's commercial office. It is certainly a wonderful work of art!

[blaze]

40. agreed!

I sent an email via his website to ask that very question. http://www.zenpop.com/

[Better Believe It]

20. Well done! Bravo!

R

[blogslut]

21. The artist should be proud.

What a wonderful thing.

[JackRiddler]

22. It's beautiful!

[bongbong]

23. Nice!

It's a great cover! But now I have this nagging song running through my head about some Lonely Hearts Club Band that I can't figure out ... :-)

[Tangerine LaBamba]

24. It's reversed, isn't it?

Doesn't the President-elect stand on the left, with his right hand on the Bible, where everyone can see it?

Great cover, though. Just amazing.

I still can't believe all this is REALLY HAPPENING IN OUR AMERICA!!!!

[JTFrog]

26. No. Past President-elects have stood on either side while raising their right hand.

[felinetta]

25. Congratulations! Exccellent art piece!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Shiver]

27. Wow

I... I have chills.

[OwnedByFerrets]

28. Major Congrats!

[sasquatch]

29. Outstanding work

:patriot:

[Faygo Kid]

30. Is that Shirley Chisholm and Viola Liuzzo next to each other, fifth row down, left?

Not sure who the guy is in between, but W.E.B. DuBois is in that foursome. I need to spend some time on this one.

Excellent!

[Starry Messenger]

31. Wow! That just gave me the chills. How beautiful.

I could see that going into the history books.

[stlsaxman]

32. How absolutely fantastic!

That cover positively ROCKS!

Congratulations!

[DeepModem Mom]

35. K&R!

[WillyT]

36. Big K & R !!!

:applause:

:kick:

[WilliamPitt]

37. The four little girls from Birmingham in the front row.

Just an astonishing piece of work.

I've been cooking on an Inauguration essay for a few days now, but needed something specific to hook onto. Just got it. I'm going to write about the inauguration within the context of this cover.

Wonderful work.

[Faygo Kid]

38. Chief Joseph next to LBJ. How cool is that?

LBJ sucked, but give him props for standing before Congress in 1965 and saying, "We SHALL Overcome."

[NJmaverick]

39. Outstanding!

:thumbsup:

[Deep13]

41. Hey, I see Douglass and John Brown. nt

[psychmommy]

42. this is so awesome. i must have it.

[pamela]

43. Excellent! He even included Viola Liuzzo.

No one ever seems to include her when discussing the heroes of the Civil Rights era. Cudos to the artist. I would love to have a poster of this, too.

[Spazito]

44. Wow, that is an incredible piece of work!

I keep scrolling back to look at it, it is amazing!

Thanks for posting this.

Recommended.

[trickyguy]

45. Absolutely beautiful and meaningful. What a great idea.

[radhika]

46. So beautiful!

Awesome work.

[bluerum]

47. Inspirational. Good work. I second the poster idea.

You could also get some giclee, lithograph or seriographs made up and market them.

I hope the Nation did not get exclusive rights!

Good luck!

[kaccey]

48. excellent

[redstate_democrat]

49. I want this as a poster. I wonder if this will be offered for sale?

[Jefferson23]

50. OMG, Congratulations, absolutely beautiful!

[ChiciB1]

51. I Used To Subscribe... Now I WANT One Of These... Where Can I Get One???

Or Two! An excellent work of art and I do LOVE the magazine, just had to cut the budget. I know it's not sold just anywhere, but I know of a book store downtown. When will it be on sale??

I'm kind of speechless right now, but do want to congratulate you for such OUTSTANDING work. Not only the art, but also for the intensity of thought it provokes.

No SILLY Andy Warhol can of soup... a superb piece that is not only beautiful, but meaningful and full of power!

KUDOS!!!!!

[MamaDem]

52. This is just so beautiful!!! I can't wait till my copy is delivered!!! nt

[Ken Burch]

55. I see Chaney, Schwerner and Goodman, half way up and to the left

n/t.

[Hekate]

56. ... On the shoulders of giants... Oh my, now I'm all teared up again.

Thanks for posting this, and congrats to johnmav at Kos.

Hekate

[Historic NY]

58. Wonderful, it should be in the National Gallery.

[BigBearJohn]

60. I am so darned proud of you. WELL DONE! You are a class act!!!!

[NBachers]

61. Wow! That's right up there with the Sgt. Pepper album cover

I get by with a little help from my friends . . . at DU

[XemaSab]

62. Izzat Harry Potter?

:shrug:

[BrklynLiberal]

63. Fantastic. Gives great imaging to the idea of each standing on the shoulders of the previous

fighters and heroes.

[JDPriestly]

64. Tears welling in my eyes! It's beautiful. Thank you.

[ClayZ]

65. Bravo! It is beautiful!

K and R

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

66. Sgt. Barack's Lonely Hearts Club Band

I like it!

[malaise]

67. Absolutely fabulous

Congrats johnmav

[blaze]

68. Prints or posters

I emailed the artist at his site ( www.zenpop.com ) and received this response.

"Thanks so much for the nice comments. (I'm a bit overwhelmed by the wonderful words I've been hearing!)

I'm still working out the details of the print / poster idea... (legally, I may have to wait up to 4 months to use it...)
When I get it sorted out (a limited-edition signed-numbered set and a general poster one), I'll contact everyone who contacted me... in order.
So, you'll definitely hear from me regarding price and options...

...and I had no idea about the Democratic Underground site... so thanks for that!

Thanks again and Happy Obama Inauguration Day!

Cheers!"

[Vadem]

69. The Nation magazine has the key to the names on the cover

at the URL below:

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20090202/key

Michelle Obama is #2 and Shirley Chisholm is the last person at #66.