Elegant Horse Pictures and Western Art Blog

Presidents Playing Poker - A Variation Of A Classic Painting

Everyone has heard of the classic “Dogs Playing Poker” series. Not many people know that the artist of that series was a gentleman from New York named Cassius Marcellus Coolidge (1844-1934). Originally there were nine paintings in that series. Coolidge began the series way back in 1903. They are still quite popular today.

That series spawned many imitations over the years. The newest is by artist Andy Thomas called “Big Dawgs Playing Poker”. The twist is that past US presidents have replaced the dogs. It works out very well!

There are two paintings in the series. The first one is comprised of past presidents from the Democratic party. It’s titled “True Blues” and it features eight former presidents having a most wonderful time and enjoying each others company at the poker table. Each president has a huge smile on their face.

The second, as you might have guessed, is a painting featuring eight Republican presidents. That one is titled “Grand Ol Gang“.

Thomas does a great job showcasing the most popular of each parties presidents and places them front and center in the paintings. Presidents John Kennedy and Bill Clinton are given the prominent positions in the “True Blues” painting and Ronald Reagan, Dwight Eisenhower, and George W Bush get equal treatment in “Grand Ol Gang“. On the other hand, the lesser known presidents like Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford get somewhat of a side view.

Art galleries report that the limited edition reproductions (there are 2008 in each series) of the paintings are flying off the shelves. In fact, the publisher of the prints (Somerset House of Houston Texas) has already announced that the paper edition of “Grand Ol Gang” is now sold out.

Presidents Playing Poker - A Variation Of A Classic Painting

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