Sustained Investigation 3

Worst Presidential Debate In History

9x11

Watercolor

This is my third and final Sustained Investigation, following the prompt "How can I express political events through my paintings" and I decided to paint a scene in the recent 2020 Presidential debate. After the debate, it was told to be the worst one in history. I knew that the topics they brought up were very important, and this debate did affect peoples votes for the election that is coming up in just 6 days from now. I wanted to add the American flag as the background because it represents our country, and I thought it would bring in color and pattern. It makes both the candidates stand out with the bold red and blue. I added two quotes they said during the debate that stood out to me personally. I noticed Donald Trump calling Covid-19 the China plague/virus, and Joe Biden told the president to shut up. I painted everything with watercolor and outlined with pen. I used watercolor pencils which was a little tricky especially with some of the smaller details and spaces that needed to be painted, but it wasn't too hard to get used to, especially because my first sustained investigation was all watercolor pencil. If I were to extend this piece, I think I'd try to incorporate some of the issues brought into the debate like covid, the economy, abortions, etc. I also would try to add more detail to really bring everything out.