It wasn't his knowledge of policy, his charm, or anything remotely leadership-like that led to the popularity of Donald Trump. If anything, it was the ease and willingness with which he turned himself into a walking meme, complete with a fandom busy creating fanfiction, fan theories (i.e. insane conspiracy theories), and, of course, tons of bad fan art. Here are some of the weirdest and wildest pieces in the current Trumpian art movement for you to absorb before they find their way into the National Portrait Gallery.
While computers are getting better at everything that makes humans so special (like opening doors), there is one area where we'll always have them beat: abstract thought. After all, it's hard to have a sense of whimsy when a misplaced semicolon can turn you into scrap. In fact, the closest we've gotten to giving computers a world of pure imagination is through "deep learning" -- software that mimics how our neutrons fire and is perhaps the future of artificial intelligence. And like any good humans, we gave computers the gift of creativity, only to squander it on monstrosities like this:
Chris RodleyThat's why you don't share a teleporter with Muppets.
This is a deep learning interpretation of one of Donald Trump's family photos. And if you're wondering why Melania looks like Miss Piggy on her way to her third divorce, that's on purpose. This art is the result of artist Chris Rodley plugging pictures of Donald Trump into a deep learning algorithm which was also "looking for images from Sesame Street." The result is this hellscape of vacant expressions, googly eyes, and wandering hands -- plus elements from Sesame Street.
Chris RodleyCourtesy of Industrial Light and Horror.
It could be a lot worse, though. You could be looking at a video of Trump transformed into an awakened eldritch horror struggling against the confines of our universe:
Though on the plus side, Trump's hair has never looked more in its element.
Eric Cheng/YouTubeOh, like you've never had a wookiee sex dream.
This nightmare fuel was brought into our world by Eric Cheng, who said he created it by plugging a video of a Trump speech into a deep learning algorithm that was simultaneously thinking about Cthulhu. The level of Cthulhu influence was governed by the volume at which Trump was speaking. We're lucky that it was one of his quieter rants. If it had been about minorities or women, that video might have accidentally opened a wormhole into the domain of the Elder Ones.
To a lot of internet manbabies, Trump is the ultimate badass. He's an ass-kicker and a risk-taker, a street fighter and shot-caller, the guy who puts the Big Mac into Mack Daddy. Of course, in order to maintain that view of Trump, you have to constantly ignore all of reality. Fortunately, the internet boys have found a way to easily block out the pesky truth by replacing it with hardcore sci-fi fan fiction!
Meet God-Emperor Trump, may his clogged arteries reign for eternity. Based on the lore of the popular tabletop gaming universe Warhammer 40,000, which is set in a ludicrously dystopian future, the cruddy side of the internet is filled with images of Trump as the iconic Emperor of Mankind, immortal ruler of the human empire bringing his never-ending war to the undesirables. Feels like satire, right? It isn't.
via The Flama
via The FlamaHis armor appears to be made from the Ark of the Covenant, which is appropriate, since it makes us want to melt our faces off.
Sure, it's pretty weird to pick an awesome god of war as the avatar for a dude who used alleged bone spurs as an excuse to get out of military duty, but that's where the total disillusion comes in.
via r/Warhammer40k
Robokoboto/Art AbyssCarrying the skulls of his own supporters doesn't seem ominous at all.
But the comparison isn't flattering for either side. Showing again that they have the cultural insight of someone who's been in a coma since the '60s, Trump fanboys seem to not realize that this Emperor of Mankind is nothing more than a freakish ghoul whose "shattered, decaying body can no longer support life," or that his rule gave rise to "technological and cultural stagnation, and a regression into tyranny, superstition and religious obfuscation and intolerance." So God-Emperor Trump is based on some creep who rules over a dystopia in which mindless, alien-hating fanatics sacrifice thousands daily to keep the bloated corpse of their despot ruler going. Maybe they did do their research after all.
And to put the cherry on the dumb neo-Nazi cake, the God-Emperor isn't, uhm ... white. He was born in central Anatolia (Turkey) in 8,000 BC. Meaning the web fascists have turned their white supremacy hero into a space-age Middle Eastern king.
Warhammer 40kOh yeah, this guy is totes going to preserve the white race, you dolts.
You already know about Pepe, the lovable comic book frog who became a hate symbol. But since Pepe has gotten too mainstream, hardcore "alt-right" dudes have created a perfect mascot for the new Trump age: a poorly drawn copyright infringement.
via Will Sommer/Medium"Racist Frog, Reclining Nude"
This corpulent little shit-grinner is Groyper. No, that's not a Trump-inspired new Pokemon (although we understand the confusion). We're talking about Groyper the Frog, the MS Paint cartoon mascot for hardcore politicos. He even comes in many adorable outfits for fans to play dress-up with (dog whistle sold separately). There's Papa John Groyper:
via Slate"These boxes actually contain Hungry Howie's."
Hulk Hogan Groyper:
Even a special edition "Are you offended yet?" Burka Groyper:
via SlateDon't try to make sense of it. That way madness lies.
But among the favorite flavors of Groyper stands Trump Groyper, somehow looking less slimy as a lumpy frog:
via Will Sommer/MediumAnd the fake hair on the fake Trump-toad looks less ridiculous than the real hair on the real Trump-golem.
So if you're wondering why all the worst accounts on Twitter switched up their avatars to this, that's why. It's definitely not because Matt Furie, the creator of Pepe, has started suing the white laces off of any popular enough site for copyright infringement. No, it's because Pepe isn't cool enough anymore. Not like Groyper, who's too cool for school -- art school, specifically.
Jon McNaughton is possibly one of history's greatest artists. Not because he created anything breathtaking or profound or thought-provoking, mind, but because his works are some of the goddamn funniest examples of religious right-wing bathos.
Jon McNaughtonFirst and foremost, why would you plant a tree three feet in front a place where people will be sitting?
This lovely painting, titled You Are Not Forgotten, features Herr Conditioner and proves that you can't make Trump look warm and charming even if you draw him yourself. But the real beauty of McNaughton's art lies in the fact that he's just a really, really hacky political cartoonist with a better brush stroke game. He often boasts about the number of "symbols" he manages to stuff into a single canvas. Here, the theme is unity. That's why a not-that-keen eye can will spot that Everyman Trump is looming over a working-class family (whom he's screwed) as they plant a flower (which he's going to kill) in front of a crowd of veterans and soldiers (whom he dishonors), disabled people (whom he doesn't care about), black people (whom he doesn't like), various cabinet members (whom he's fired), police officers (whom he's insulted), and laborers (whom he doesn't pay).
But McNaughton didn't make his name by trimming half a dozen inches off of Trump's waist. He became a conservative darling by taking dumps on President Obama for a solid eight years. Here's his interpretation of Obama's domestic policy:
Jon McNaughtonDid you notice the 9/11 symbolism? The thing that happened seven years before Obama was president, when a Republican was in office?
His foreign policy:
Jon McNaughtonTo be fair, Los Alamos does have a really nice golf course.
His stance on Obamacare:
Jon McNaughtonThere goes the plot for National Treasure 3.
And here again is that classic, featuring Obama trampling over the rights of the very same working man who Trump will later save while all the good Republican presidents are yelling at him:
Jon McNaughton"But I wanted to plant a tree there ..."
Man, Obama really seems like a dick in these portraits. We're surprised that the nuclear blast didn't affect his golf swing, or that he escaped unharmed after dipping the Constitution in napalm and setting it alight in his hand, although that's to be expected when you're Literally Satan. His abilities are truly unending, as is his cruelty ... as demonstrated by that time he forced a soldier to eat a slice of a gay wedding cake.
Jon McNaughton"It's not even ice cream cake. Thanks, Obama."
Save us, President Trump! Save us from that treacherous black sn- oh, you already have.
Jon McNaughtonThere is an extremely famous flag advising against this very thing!
While Trump himself has a very divisive sort of popularity, the same can't be said about the Trump children -- Ivanka, Donnie Jr., and the one who looks like a hardboiled egg with a face drawn on it. His spawn are nigh-universally ridiculed, constantly putting their feet in those mouths they can't ever seem to fully close. But one Trump kid is exempt from this ridicule: Barron, the unassuming, sweet-looking 12-year-old who actually has to live in the White House with his mom and dad. Making fun of a kid is not the nicest thing to do, so two sensitive artists have gone the other direction, trying to delve into the mind of this quiet boy and figuring out the turmoil he must feel from having the most powerful terrible father in the whole world -- in fabulous manga form, natch.
Yuusuke Hori"At least it's not a racist amphibian."
This very melodramatic piece was posted by artist Yuusuke Hori right after Trump's inauguration. It shows Barron in sparkly bishonen form with a title that reads "My loud, annoying dad is president, so the quiet unassuming life I wanted is completely over." It was only meant as a silly mockup cover, but because it got insanely popular, we eventually got the for-realsies The Adventures Of Barron And His Loud-Mouthed President Father, and it's everything we've ever wanted.
Joy LingWell, except for Trump not to be president, but still.
To all the non-otaku out there, TAOBAHLMPF (created by Brooklyn-based artist Joy Ling) sees Barron, who really just wants to "watch Netflix and play Pokemon," teaming with Sasha and Malia Obama to solve the puzzle surrounding a "mysterious anomaly" that appeared after his father took office -- which is not a polite way to refer to Kellyanne Conway. We don't want to give away too many spoilers, but one of the central conflicts revolves around Barron trying to persuade his father to help put things right. Oh, that's right, Donald Jerwillickers Trump makes an appearance, or at least the DJT from the universe where he doesn't believe that exercise is a liberal plot to sap his precious bodily fluids.
Joy Ling"Please don't tell me which flui-"
"Semen."
Adam Wears is on Twitter and Facebook, and has a newsletter about depressing history that you should definitely subscribe to.
Art is great for letting some of the tension out, in case that's a thing you need to do in this day and age, so maybe pick up some Bob Ross oil paints?
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For more, check out 8 Hilariously Offensive Artworks Featuring Famous Presidents and 5 Unsettling Sub-Genres Of Fan Art Lurking On The Internet.
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