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![Atomic Age Adventism: A Postwar Polemic
Wayland Springs [Methodist Camp, Imboden, Lawrence County, Arkansas]
Crayon and watercolor on paper
Circa: 1946-1949
Size: 40” x 22 1/2”
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“This is the Devil lashed loose! I come as a thief, The Devil’s Viper attack on Pearl Harbor!” So this large crayoned Atomic-Age Adventist Polemic begins.
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Warnings of the Rapture, Judgment Day, or as it’s formally known, the Second Advent or Parousia, or simply the Second Coming, are as old as the writings themselves, with movements throughout history that gained widespread attention. Think of the Shakers, Millerites, the Mormons, and Seventh-Day Adventists, as well as numerous televangelists pumping you for money and attention. See my video on a related 1844 Millerite drawing.
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This graphically intense Adventist drawing takes into account the Atomic Bomb of 1945 and the Axis Powers of Hitler, Mussolini, and Hirohito and heeds warnings by citing Thessalonians 5 throughout, which urges readiness for the “Day of the Lord” and believers to be sober, vigilant, and filled with faith, love, and hope.
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The Axis Powers are depicted as part of a three-headed demon representing the countries of Japan, Germany, and Italy, with Hirohito, Hitler, and Mussolini appearing as hooked frogs leaping, all chained to the Archangel Michael. The demon’s tail is an atomic crank. Honk-Honk!!
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We are a NYC gallery exhibiting a Venn diagram of Outsider, Self-Taught & Contemporary Works of Art. Thursday-Sunday 12-6pm.
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#53stanton #lesgalleries #lowereastsidegalleries #venndiagramart #contemporaryart #outsiderart #folkart #outsiderartist #americanantiques #adventist](https://scontent.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-15/527279267_18412026052128150_7801750063002614463_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_e35_tt6&_nc_cat=110&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=18de74&_nc_ohc=lx7QBwH_Tf8Q7kNvwGNaSBa&_nc_oc=AdkNAixEE5J-wQWT7LlJ3gzVXncT44yacPiF3-KfHM7TLVp8jw8BPRF5rc_KGMtUEng&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent.cdninstagram.com&edm=ANo9K5cEAAAA&_nc_gid=UsZcS7Dw_MkYS35q_q0xXg&oh=00_AfVwAOkDSvujQpSR22KX0XKGEaT8UeHUndgLO-hsByGTeA&oe=68B7A33A)
![GALLERY OPEN TODAY 12-6. An Extraordinary Ojibwa Pictographic Textile / Yarn on linen / Circa: 1900-1920 /Size: 28” (w) x 28” (h) with an Iroquois False Face Society Mask / Circa: 1900 /Size: 10” x 8.”
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The Ojibwa and other Native tribes have a long history of using pictographic imagery for storytelling—from medicine scrolls, spirit sticks, and in many instances, ledger drawings of the Plains Indian tribes.
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An old label, attached to the textile, reads, “This is an Indian prayer rug used by the Ojibway and presented by one of the Indians as a friendly and protective offering for kindness received. — E. G. G.” [Ellen Grant Gustin]
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Though this rare textile is misidentified as a prayer rug (the Ojibwa were not weavers), and it is not known if the full textile has any narrative, we may interpret that the figures on the upper left represent Ms. Gustin and an Ojibwa person who presented the textile to Gustin (possibly for her religious instruction). The stylized headdresses are quite remarkable, and I love the image of the Indian child standing atop the horse.
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The Rev. Ellen G. Gustin was a strongly spoken preacher, a pioneering woman suffragist, and President of the Women’s Board of Foreign Missions. In 1877, Gustin was part of a “small but radical Christian denomination” and preached a series of revivals in Westerly, Rhode Island, causing such a commotion that her preaching got national attention. Gustin also preached in Portsmouth, NH.
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Provenance: Rev. Ellen Grant Gustin (1836-1924) of Attleboro, MA.
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We are a NYC gallery exhibiting a Venn diagram of Outsider, Self-Taught & Contemporary Works of Art. Thursday-Sunday 12-6pm.
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#53stanton #lesgalleries #lowereastsidegalleries #venndiagramart #contemporaryart #outsiderart #folkart #outsiderartist #americanantiques #africanamericanartist #americanindianart](https://scontent.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-15/520515960_18410069974128150_3086235923796078866_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_e35_tt6&_nc_cat=101&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=18de74&_nc_ohc=-96HYXj6UisQ7kNvwEZPmIA&_nc_oc=Admsosbk-bqnkhqYVtXEI5P9FLmjXsPmSsnahEBlPRyj5BOlELpWIVsI6RxuG2zSSpQ&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent.cdninstagram.com&edm=ANo9K5cEAAAA&_nc_gid=UsZcS7Dw_MkYS35q_q0xXg&oh=00_AfVlp4vN_5P_nMfKBTO2GuPt77MSmZxVwTT7QUCLzT23ZA&oe=68B7B275)
