I think that all supreme court justices should wear bunny ears.
7. John C. Calhoun: Vice Presidents with Octopuses on Their Heads
7. John C. Calhoun
Presidents: John Quincy Adams, 1825-1829, Andrew Jackson, 1829-32
Party: Democratic-Republican
State: South Carolina
Slave Owner: Yes. Big time.
Calhoun became embroiled in the Petticoat Affair in 1830 when his spouse, Floride, along with a slew of other Washington socialites organized against War Secretary John Eaton’s new wife. The recently widowed Peggy Eaton had the unladylike temerity to own a bar and a boarding house. Eaton’s main defender was, Calhoun’s boss, Andrew Jackson. Calhoun was dropped from the ticket during Jackson’s second term. The scandal was turned into the 1936 film The Gorgeous Hussy.
Sketchbook: Antonin Scalia and Samuel Alito Chilling Out
Kickin' it.
6. Daniel D. Tompkins: Vice Presidents with Octopuses on Their Heads
6. Daniel D. Tompkins
President: James Monroe, 1817-1825
Party: Democratic-Republican
State: New York
Slave Owner?: No.
Daniel D. Tompkins was the only vice president to work for free. His entire salary was garnished for outstanding debts to the state of New York. Of course, his personal finance issues along with a raging case of alcoholism meant that Tompkins rarely had the time, or ability, to perform his vice presidential duties.
5. Elbridge Gerry: Vice Presidents with Octopuses on Their Heads
5. Elbridge Gerry
President: James Madison, 1813-14
Party: Democratic-Republican
State: Massachusetts
Slave Owner?: No
Gerry signed a bill on election redistricting that was highly favorable to his party. Rival newspapers decried the bill as “gerrymandering.” The name stuck. Like George Clinton, Gerry also died in office, making James Madison the only president to lose two vice presidents.
Sketchbook: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Showing Off Her Robot Fist
Don't mess with Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
4. George Clinton: Vice Presidents with Octopuses on Their Heads
4. George Clinton
Presidents: Thomas Jefferson, 1805-09, James Madison, 1809-1812
Party: Democratic-Republican
State: New York
Slave Owner?: No.
The first Vice President to die in office. Not to be confused with the lead singer of Parliament Funkadelic. This George Clinton never got funked up nor did he go up to the mothership.
Sketchbook: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Riding a Pig Bear
Some rough sketches for a series I'm working on about supreme court justices traveling through a post-apocalyptic America.
3. Aaron Burr: Vice Presidents with Octopuses on Their Heads
3. Aaron Burr
President: Thomas Jefferson, 1801-1805
Party: Democratic-Republican
State: New York
Slave Owner?: Yes.
One of only two Vice Presidents to shoot a man while in office. In this case, the man, treasure secretary Alexander Hamilton, died. He was indicted for murder. And then later, for treason.
2. Thomas Jefferson: Vice Presidents with Octopuses on Their Heads
2. Thomas Jefferson
President: John Adams, 1797-1801
Party: Democratic-Republican
State: Virginia
Slave Owner?: Yes. The guy who wrote the Declaration of Independence owned slaves.
Jefferson died precisely fifty years after signing the Declaration of Independence – July 4, 1826. His political rival John Adams died the same day. July 4 generally seems to be a bad day for veeps. Hannibal Hamlin, a vice president under Lincoln, also died on that day.
1. John Adams: Vice Presidents with Octopuses on Their Heads
1. John Adams
President: George Washington, 1789-97
Party: Federalist
State: Massachusetts
Slave Owner?: No.
John Adams led a month long debate on the proper title of the President of the United States. One name he pushed was “His Highness the President of the United States of America, and Protector of their Liberties.”
The Origin Story or Why I Stayed Up All Night to Draw Vice Presidents
Last year, between getting laid off of a punishing corporate job at Yahoo! and my wife giving birth to my first child, my good friend Ted invited me to participate in the From Dusk til Drawn fundraiser at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Santa Barbara. Basically, it involved drawing for 24 straight hours. At that point in my life – i.e. before children – sleep deprivation was a novelty. It sounded insane. I was in.
The last thing I wanted was to be struggling for ideas of something to draw at four in the morning. I needed to do a series, I thought. So after some debate, I decided to do portraits of all 47 vice presidents of the United States. Why? I don’t know. I’ve always had a strange affinity to the executive branch’s number two guy. As Vice President Charles Dawes, who presided under Calvin Coolidge, once complained, "I can do only two things here. One of them is to sit up here on this rostrum [in the Senate] and listen to you birds talk without the ability to reply. The other is to look at the newspapers every morning to see how the President's health is."
The Constitution is vague on the veep. Though the position bestows on it all of the authority and pomp of the U.S. Government, vice presidents throughout history have struggled to find purpose in a poorly defined role, all the while waiting for death. It’s a bit like life itself. A few, through ambition, talent and a lot of luck, ascended to the top job. Most moldered in obscurity. I added the octopuses because I thought they were funny. It takes a rare person to pull off an air of dignity with a cephalopod on his head.
During the event, fueled by a combination of coffee, alcohol, tacos and patriotic zeal, I ended up cranked out 22 portraits during the full 24 hours. During the course of the night, I discovered that people really seemed drawn to the pictures. I sold 7 and I had friends who were asking for their own copies. Somehow I had stumbled on something.
So I resolved to complete the set. What I plan to post here over the next few months is the fruits of that crazy scheme. I hope you enjoy.