Old Glory 2002

Bo Bartlett painted "Old Glory." Notice how the subject is posed against a backdrop of sky, draped in an American flag. The composition invites an immediate tension, a blend of vulnerability and defiance. The flag itself, a potent symbol of national identity, is rendered here as a garment, simultaneously protective and revealing. Bartlett plays with this semiotic charge. Is the figure enrobed or confined? The stars and stripes, iconic in their regularity, take on a new form when draped. The formal arrangement of color and shape creates visual questions about autonomy, conformity, and the weight of national symbolism. The subject stands, and the space around her is more than mere context. Bartlett's use of realism is deliberate, inviting us to consider how symbols operate within a pictorial space, shaping not only our visual experience but also our understanding of cultural narratives.