politics

The Cuban-American Artist That Made This Controversial Trump Piece Is Saying He’s Not Sorry About It

DER SPIEGEL/ILLOZ.COM
By February 6, 2017 at 4:44 pm

You might have never heard of Edel Rodriguez before but chances are you’ve seen his work on any number of magazines over the years. The 45-year-old Cuban-American artist’s provocative work has caught the attention of fans and critics alike, but his most recent contribution to magazine Der Spiegel, a German publication with a circulation of around 1 million, has stirred controversy and heated debate.

The cover of Der Spiegel features President Trump holding the Statue of Liberty’s head as if it was beheaded.


According to BBC News, Edel Rodriguez said the image depicts Trump’s “beheading of democracy.”

The cover was inspired by President Trump’s controversial “immigration ban.”


For Rodriguez, the Statue of Liberty symbolizes the importance of immigration in U.S. history — an important theme in his work.

a cover I illustrated 20 years ago #ERcovers

A photo posted by Edel Rodriguez (@edelrodriguez) on


Rodriguez designed this cover for Time magazine 20 years ago.

Edel Rodriguez created the Der Spiegel cover to compare ISIS to President Trump, both of which he considers to be extremists.

The Washington Post reports that Edel Rodriguez, who fled Cuba in 1980 when he was 9 years old, was “angered” by President Trump’s immigration “ban.”

The Der Spiegel cover isn’t the first time Edel Rodriguez has drawn inspiration from President Trump.


This Time cover highlighted a tumultuous time in Trump’s campaign last August. He had just replaced his campaign manager with Kellyanne Conway and brought Stephen Bannon aboard. At the time it appeared that Trump’s ship was sinking, however, this ultimately proved wrong.

Edel’s “Meltdown” motif was updated a few months later after Trump’s campaign suffered another major hit.

my NEW cover for TIME magazine is out today. Thanks to art director D.W. Pine and editor Nancy Gibbs for the opportunity. They're doing a great job this election season. From TIME magazine: "The Oct. 24 issue of TIME may look a little familiar to some readers. In order to capture the latest twists in Donald Trump’s campaign and the rising anger within the Republican party leadership about their standard bearer’s behavior, we asked artist Edel Rodriguez to reprise his illustration of Donald Trump which appeared on the Aug. 22 issue of TIME—this time with just one small twist. (Read TIME creative director D.W. Pine on the impact of Rodriguez’s original image.) Rodriguez was formerly an international art director for the magazine and has since completed a variety of covers for TIME, including the cover that followed the 2015 attacks on Paris. This week mark’s the sixth time—and the fifth since he launched his presidential campaign in June 2016—Trump has been on magazine’s cover. The businessman first appeared on the cover in 1989. By comparison, Trump’s opponent Hillary Clinton has appeared on TIME’s cover 31 times; she was first on the cover in September 1992 when her husband Bill was two months away from winning the White House." #time #edelrodriguez #studioedel #election2016 #edelcovers

A photo posted by Edel Rodriguez (@edelrodriguez) on


This cover came shortly after the leaked audio between Donald Trump and Billy Bush surfaced, and around the same time as the disastrous final debate. Polls at the time suggested Trump’s chances to win the presidency were very slim. Again, this proved wrong.

Edel Rodriguez’s work has been featured on the cover of Der Spiegel before. The image featured a familiar face.

My new cover for Germany's Der Spiegel magazine, "The End of the World (as we know it)" #ercovers #edelrodriguez

A photo posted by Edel Rodriguez (@edelrodriguez) on


Yep, Donald Trump. This cover was released a few days after the November elections and features the title: “The End Of The World (as we know it).”

Though Rodriguez’s design for Der Spiegel has drawn a lot of criticism, the Cuban-American artist defends his choice.


Rodriguez defended himself on Instagram, saying, “history has shown that shedding light on hate is better than hiding it so here you go.”

Rodriguez has his own reasons for his disdain of Trump’s policies, not the least of which is that he is a Cuban refugee.


“I don’t want to live in a dictatorship,” Rodriguez told the Washington Post. “If I wanted to live in a dictatorship, I’d live in Cuba, where it’s much warmer.”


READ: In Protest Against Trump’s Immigration Ban, 1,000 NYC Bodega Owners Closed Up Shop For A Day

Tags: , ,

Watch A Mini-Doc About Japan's "Chicanos"

identities

Watch A Mini-Doc About Japan’s “Chicanos”

By Omar Villegas February 6, 2017 at 7:23 pm
Credit: Louis Ellison / Vimeo

“Mexicans and Japanese have a closeness.”

“Chicano,” a new mini-doc by filmmakers Louis Ellison and Jacob Hodgkinson, is less than 10 minutes long but it packs plenty of insight about a peculiar Japanese subculture: those who love Chicano gang culture. Japanese “Chicanos” emulate the ’90s-era looks of Los Angeles gang members (and their associates) to a tee, but this film reveals their attraction to the culture is far from superficial. One of the interviewees is Shin Miyata, the owner of Barrio Gold, a record label that distributes Chicano oldies and modern Chicano rap music. Miyara, who lived in Los Angeles briefly to see and experience the culture for himself, explains that in the ’90s, Lowrider magazine made its way out to Japan, exposing them to a new, exciting culture. Soon, people like Miyata became hungry to learn more not just about Chicano gang fashion, but the social conditions that helped create it. Some Japanese “Chicanos” did more than just adopt the style displayed by their American counterparts, they also began building lowriders, with an attention to detail — check out the Carl’s Jr at the 3:15 mark — that they believe is a hallmark of both Chicano and Japanese culture.


READ: A Gang Member from San Diego and a Punk from TJ are the Creators of “Cholo Goth“

We recommend
Border Patrol Discover 3-Year-Old Alone Near Rio Grande With Only A Phone Number In His Shoe

Acting Director for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Matthew Albence went on Fox News to proclaim that the safety and security of children is their main priority. “These children are being victimized,” Albence said on television today. “We know they are being trafficked. We know they are being recycled and sent back across the […]
20 Of The Most Uncomfortably Awkward Photos Of Trump Before He Was President

No matter how you feel about the current president, you’ve got to admit that Donald Trump is a bizarre guy. Between late night tweet storms and his obsession with fast food, he’s got some usual habits. Not to mention all the strangeness that has arisen from his time as a reality star and cameos on […]
Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro Visits Trump And Declares Mutual Interest In Traditional Families

President Jair Bolsonaro arrived on Tuesday and has already caused a stir in the press because of his comments at a press conference at the White House.

Paid Promoted Stories