Danielle’s print, entitled “Mayor Eats Mayor” is a print of ink on paper, measuring approximately 8” x 10,” and appears to be a four color process printing technique, complete with halftone dots. This image appears to confront the contexts of the art world, social, and political arenas. The combination of the playful imagery of the mayoral burger and the mayoral man makes for a light-hearted approach to a potentially serious topic. I think this image is quite interesting, as it juxtaposes the political with the cartoon corporate, which give way to a world of possible interpretations. Let me describe the image in detail so we can unpack the possible playful meaning of the mayor eating another mayor.
The image has a plain blue background, and shows what appears to be a man about to take a bite out of a hamburger that also resemble a man. The burger bun appears to be the head of this character, as the bun has eyes on the top half of the bun, and a nose and eyebrows as well. Two circles appear on both sides of the eyes and nose, which appear to be the cheeks of the burger-man. Although a bit more unclear, it’s possible that the mouth on the burger-man is either the burger itself, or possibly one of the lines that separate the burger from either the top half or the lower half of the bun. The burger itself includes what appears to be cheese on top of it, that extends over the edges of the burger in melted fashion. The lower edge of the melted cheese could also perhaps be the mouth of the burger-man also, as the curvy line could suggest a frown or fright as the burger-man is about the be eaten. The eyes of the burger-man are looking straight up into the face of the man who is about to eat him, suggesting an awareness and discomfort at the situation. Attached to the burger head is a proportionately small body with arms and legs dangling down below the bottom half of the bun. The body is dressed in a formal outfit, complete with a white vest, a pink overcoat, blue slacks, long socks, and formal shoes. He also is wearing a white flowery corsage, a sash, and a pair of corded eyeglasses and miniature top hat are also visible. While the legs of this character are hanging straight down, the arms are outstretched and bent upward as though the arms and hands are giving support to the oversized burger-head, or perhaps hanging on for dear life without the support of any ground surface for the legs and feet. The top hat is disconnected from the head, apparently floating in the air, as it appears off to the left side above the hand of the man who is about to eat this burger-man. The corded eyeglasses, although not disconnected, do also appear to be floating in the air, as if dropped suddenly. Perhaps the eyeglasses, and the hat are flying off the hands and head of the burger-man in the turbulence of the situation, as if the burger-man was suddenly picked up without warning. Proportionally to the man, the burger-man is much smaller, but the head of the burger-man, which is ultimately a cheeseburger, appears to be closer to the real size of a cheeseburger, although still a bit on the large side, much like a big juicy Thurman burger!
The real man who is about to eat the burger-man appears to be a black man, wearing a white dress shirt and a striped business necktie. He has conservative short hair, wears square-like shaped eyeglasses, and has a mustache. His mouth is opening, as if ready to take a big bite out the burger head. His teeth are exposed, and his hands hold tightly from each side the burger as he appears to move it closer to his mouth. He holds the burger with both hands, on the sides of the burger with thumbs on bottom and fingers gripping from the top of each side, as if the burger is just too large to eat with one hand. His eyes are wide and looking down, appearing to be excited about eating. His mouth and hands also appear to be slightly exaggerated in size, which gives depth to the image as if there is a greater sense of foreground and background than is really there.
Finally, considering the title and observing the image, it seems quickly obvious here that we have two characters with which many will be immediately familiar. Knowing that this image was first observed in Columbus, Ohio, it seems clear that the black man is intended to be Mayor Michael Coleman, as it appears to be a cartoon like caricature of the Mayor, with enough detail to be recognizable. Although Michael Coleman is a contemporary figure, the burger-man harkens back to the past, to a time when fast food chain McDonald’s, introduced several characters to help them advertise their products to children in the 1970’s and 80’s. The flagship character was Ronald McDonald, and together with his friends in McDonaldland, would have fun and brief adventures in commercial format. His friends included characters like Grimace, Birdie, The Fry Kids, Hamburglar, and Mayor McCheese. It is Mayor McCheese who is clearly the object with Mayor Coleman in this image, hence the title about the mayor eating another mayor.
There could be many interpretations to this image. My first thought was that this could be a statement about globalization, since the imagery uses both a real politician, and a fantasy character that represents a company that is hugely participating in globalization. McDonald’s participates so much in globalization that the term “McWorld” has even been coined in their dishonor to represent this idea of corporations moving so far into other parts of the world that they have damaged foreign cultures by making them look more like our culture because all the same goods are available, and all the familiar logos are seen in places where critics say perhaps they should not or do not need to be. Perhaps the artist believes that Mayor Coleman has bought into this idea because he is participating by eating the burger. This image could also be one of many criticisms of McDonald’s besides the idea of globalization, including another prominent criticism which suggests that kids and adults are so unhealthy and overweight largely due to the prominence of fast food chains, of which McDonald’s is the easiest target. It’s possible there could be a statement here about Coleman’s policies regarding health education in the city of Columbus. All the instrumental interpretation aside, this could also be a piece that simply gives image to a clever title, a work of art that brings a comedic scene to life as one Mayor eats another. The act of eating does suggest some type of power from the eating character over the “being eaten” character, which, representing McDonald’s, could suggest a political fight between government and corporate powers.
I seriously want a Thurman burger now.
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