Open letter week - my fair city

This week I am posting an open letter a day. Feel free to write your own and let me know about it.

Dear Fair City,



We had one of those moments when the world - at least the art world - was paying attention to us and we blew it. Shepard Fairey, the creator of the iconic Obama "Hope" poster (which is now part of a p*ssing match with the Associated Press since the Obama image uses an AP photograph), is having his first solo exhibit at a major art museum.



I first became aware of Fairey with stickers of Andre the Giant. I have seen them off and on in various places for years. But with the exhibit approaching, they were cropping up in many more places.



I saw on the side of an abandoned night club one of his other posters and planned to take the kids back to show them. But in the 6 days between seeing it and getting the kids back, it was painted over.

Of course, Mr. Fairey had been arrested on his way to the opening night party because of several outstanding warrants for defacement of property.

Now he was frolicking with the Mayor earlier that week. The police couldn't have arrested him then? No, we had to do it right before he entered the museum.



I'm not too worried about Mr. Fairey getting his due process. He can afford the best attorneys. I'm worried for how we will be seen. We were the city that embraced that crazy painting style - Impressionism - in the late 19th century which is why various museums have some of the most important paintings of that time.

What happened to our sense of artistic adventure?



Sincerely,
SMID