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Robert RiggsProspector firing Rifle ( Happiness is a Warm Gun ) Gay ArtCirca 1940
Circa 1940
About the Item
Tempera mixed with gum arabic and alcohol on Renaissance Panel
Robert Riggs was a gay man. Being gay in American during the 1940's time was something not to flaunt in public. Rigg's had to communicate his underlying feelings in more symbolic ways.
Throughout Riggs oeuvre, one sees continuous references to strong hunked out manly men and vulnerable boys. It is a core element of is iconography and is described in a powerful graphic style.
In “Prospector firing Rifle” is a Dick Pic. Riggs is clearly making a sexual statement about the moment of climax. The long, straight rifle explodes and is captured at the peak moment of climax. Meanwhile, the bag two bags of gold clearly resemble the other part of the male anatomy. Riggs was a thoughtful and meticulous visual thinker and nothing in any of Riggs’s compositions were haphazardly placed. In tribute to the artist’s suppressed feelings, I have given this work a second title “Happiness is a Warm Gun”. It’s my belief that Riggs saw this work as more than an editorial assignment for a national magazine. This was a moment of contentment for Riggs express his repressed feelings.
Provenance: Illustration House
There is a reason why there are few contemporary painters who can paint a portrait this good. It's hard to do. It's easy to throw some paint or spray a mess of graffiti on canvas. That's easy. To execute a portrait with a great depth of anatomy and structure takes years of academic training. In Riggs's time there were teachers who knew how to pass on this knowledge. He studied at the Art Students League and the Académie Julian . Today, they are very few and far between. Robert Riggs was a Gay Artist .
- Creator:Robert Riggs (1896 - 1970, American)
- Creation Year:Circa 1940
- Dimensions:Height: 12 in (30.48 cm)Width: 28.5 in (72.39 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:a layer of yellowing dammar varnish.
- Gallery Location:Miami, FL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU38532542183
Robert Riggs
Known for his scenes of prize-fighting and circus-genre, Robert Riggs had a highly successful career as an artist, especially in the ‘30s and ‘40s. His painting, The Brown Bomber, showed the boxing victory of Joe Louis over Max Schmeling. This is one of the paintings that earned Riggs election to the National Academy of Design in 1946. He was born in Decatur, Illinois, and as a young man ran away from home and joined the circus. He studied at the James Milliken University in Illinois and then trained at the Art Students League in New York, but his study was interrupted by Army service in the First World War. He attended the Académie Julian in Paris and then returned to the United States where he settled in Philadelphia and worked for N. W. Ayer & Sons, an advertising agency for whom he did numerous illustrations.
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