Oil on Canvas, 36” x 48” (2008)

When Vladimir Putin ended his second term as Russia’s President and became Prime Minister, he faced the succession planning woes that plagued King Lear, who like Putin is “Every inch a king.” “Like King Lear’s reign, Vladimir Putin’s rule in Russia is filled with his countrymen’s love, his officers’ betrayal and a delicate succession plan.”

“Vladimir Putin holds the poisoned spy Alexander Litevinko the way Lear held his dead daughter Cordelia.”

Theme: As the rule of a loved and obstinate king wanes, he becomes gluttonous over his kingdom’s legacy