Painting Borders On Fascist?

As the title of your painting suggests, ours is "One Nation Under God" -- not "One Nation Under Christ" as your painting depicts. At best, your painting is offensive to non-Christians or those who exercise their right not to believe in the God. At worst, the painting borders on fascist. I guess this just goes to prove one thing -- that fundamentalism is not restricted to just to regions like the Middle East and countries like Yemen. It is alive and well in the US of A.  I pray that you will see the light -- that history has proven that mixing religion into politics is a lethal combination. I would have though that 9/11 had proven that.
Rev. Fr. Anastasios Gounaris
Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Christian Church

This is an interesting perspective coming from a Christian minister.  Are you not familiar with our country’s Christian roots?  The symbolism of Christ holding the Constitution should not be offensive if you believe the Constitution was divinely inspired.  And then you state that that the painting “borders on Fascist?”  Fascism is where the state becomes more important than the individual, usually with a military run authoritarian government—the exact opposite of a Republic! Fundamentalism is a strict coherence to one’s beliefs.  In an age of compromise we need more good Americans to stand up for what they believe in. 

Judge Not Lest Ye Be Judged

I get angry letters on a regular basis from confused people regarding my painting, "One Nation Under God."  Here is one letter followed by a short response from me:


So EVERY politician, judge (which I am, thank you), and hollywood professional is automatically "left wing" and awful and on the wrong side? What about the philanthropists in these groups? Without these "liberals" there would be many starving, homeless and orphaned people in this world. Nice concept for art, but your random "grouping" and mass condemnations are not worthy of print. A lot of those you randomly put on the "wrong" side are very good Christ-loving people. P.S. Where are Jesus' family of Messianic Jews depicted?


If a man wearing black leather, chains and covered with tattoos was charged with a crime in your court, would you immediately think he was guilty? If you had taken only a few minutes to read my comments you would find the true intention of these symbolic figures. There are good philanthropists (and Jews) from all walks of life, but that wasn’t the point of the painting.

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ORIGINAL ART GIVEAWAY!!!

By way of appreciation I will be giving away one of my original drawings to one of my Facebook fans! (CONTEST RULES BELOW)

In this contest I will give away the ORIGINAL DRAWING titled, “I was touched.”  This is not a print…it’s the real deal! 

The inspiration for this drawing comes from Luke Chapter 8:46-48

"And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me:  for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me.  And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she was healed immediately.  And he said unto her, Daughter, be of good comfort:  thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace."

For me, this is one of the most touching moments in the Bible and I plan some day to paint it.  Drawings like this help me to start the process of creation and seeing it in my mind.  I hope that this will be a worthy gift to whoever wins.  


(Contest ended July 24, 2011)
Thank you to all who participated.  We will give away more special items in the future!

Beautifully Simple and Simply Beautiful

Next Monday I will be going into seclusion as I begin my newest painting.  The title will be, "Wake Up America."  I want this painting to create a shocking visual truth of what is happening in our country and hopefully wake up more Americans as to what is at stake.

I look around me and I am utterly amazed at the apathy and denial of many Americans as they refuse to deal with the debt crisis our country is facing. Congress has made no headway in dealing with this issue.  In April the Congress was only able to agree to 36.5 billion in spending cuts.

Our gross debt has increased over $500 billion each year since fiscal year (FY) 2003, with increases of $1 trillion in FY2008, $1.9 trillion in FY2009, and $1.7 trillion in FY2010.  Together with the budget deficit, this debt was one of the reasons given by Standard and Poors to downgrade the United States' credit outlook to "negative" on April 18, 2011.

We simply cannot curb our spending in Washington.  We must make significant changes to the way our country runs the federal government.  But too many are chained to their entitlement spending mentality and will not tolerate the government taking away anything they feel is owed to them.  We feel that the federal government must babysit every aspect of our lives.  Americans need to grow up.

In the next sixteen months I will offer some solutions in both a visual and multi-media manner as to how we can take our country from where we are now, to where it would be incredibly prosperous.  My ideas will sometimes sound familiar and other times be completely unheard of, but know this:  the correct answer is often the most simple and that which is beautifully simple is in my opinion simply beautiful. 

Stay tuned...first painting will be released October 1st!

One Nation Under God on TV

I am asking for some help with a special TV commercial we are doing for my painting One Nation Under God.  It will be aired across the country beginning this August. 

If you own a print of my painting One Nation Under God we would like to include you in the commercial sharing your feelings about the image; what it means to you.  I will give those who participate a free signed print of one of my paintings.  If you live in Utah or are close enough to travel to the studio location I would be grateful.  The day of the TV filming is Wednesday, June 22nd.  It will take only 30 minutes.  If you are interested please e-mail us at mcnaughtonart@msn.com.  Leave your name and phone number and we will call you.  Thank you for your help with our effort.

Sincerely,
Jon McNaughton

Shake the Nation

Sometimes life seems stranger than fiction.  One of the things that continue to amaze me is the constant attack I get from those who hate the message I am portraying in my work.  I get a constant barrage of emails, phone calls and shout outs from those who have targeted me for speaking in defense of Christian Conservative values.  This never happened when I was content with only painting landscape paintings, but it sure feels right to take a stand for something in a world that increasingly expects the majority to conform to political correctness.

One of the things that I am endeavoring to do with my art now is to use it as a way to influence people to take a second look at our situation.  To open their eyes to the deceit we have been fed by the media regarding our domestic and foreign policy which has led us down a dangerous road to insolvency and ruin. 

The antagonists can yell and stomp their feet.  I am getting more and more heckling on my Facebook, Twitter and all over the Internet.  But at the same time it is comforting to hear the many words of encouragement and support from those who share my values and belief.  Please pray for my family and me as we embark on the next fourteen months, which lead up to the presidential election.  The new paintings I have planned are going to shake the nation.

I'm Just An Artist...What Can I Do?

I was asked when was the first time I knew I wanted to paint political paintings.  I had to sigh as I remembered the single event that started it all. 

It was a sunny afternoon in the summer of 2008 as I came into my studio with a heavy feeling of depression and helplessness having just heard that John McCain would be the Republican nominee for the Republican party.  I knew in my heart that it would be a difficult race, but McCain was far from a conservative and our country needed someone who believed in the principles of the Constitution. 

As I sat in my chair alone in the gallery I bowed my head and felt the urge to pray.  I remember saying, “Lord, I’m just an artist.  What can I do?”  At that moment I had a singular experience that I will always remember.  I turned my head in the direction of my easel and saw a large painting, completed in full detail.  I looked at it for about ten seconds and just as it was about to fade from my mind the words “One Nation Under God” were audible in my head.  I grabbed a piece of paper and a pencil and as rapidly as I could I drew the placement of the figures as I had seen them.

At that time I didn’t tell anyone but my wife about the experience.  For me it was profound.  I felt God had given me a gift, but it scared me to even think about it.  I had never painted anything like it before.  It was the most politically incorrect image I had ever seen.  I knew people would be angry that did not agree, but I was determined to proceed and do the painting.

Now that it has been almost three years since I released this image I am humbled and amazed at the reaction the painting has received.  Many have been strengthened by its message and many have been critical of the work.  I simply feel that I did what I was supposed to do. 

You could call it a vision, an epiphany, a moment of inspiration, whatever it was, I know that it was inspired and whether the world finds it acceptable is unimportant.  I believe that the Constitution was inspired and that by abiding by its principles of limited government and by remembering our Lord we will be blessed as a people.  

Perhaps in your own life you have felt similar to me.  "I'm just one person.  What can I do?"  The reason I have shared this personal story is not to bring attention to me, but to suggest that you do the same.  When we ask God how we can make a difference He will always answer.  Sometimes the answer is not what we want to hear, but it will change the world if you comply.  As our country struggles to decide which path it will take, we need to use our individual gifts and circles of influence to help as many people as possible to understand what is happening.  

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