Trump Is Missing the Entire Point of Arches
For American artists and architects, the structures embody the virtues and vulnerabilities of the republic. The president’s proposal breaks the pattern.
TL;DR
- Arches have been used in the U.S. since its inception to visually represent national ideals and republicanism.
- Early arches, like those welcoming George Washington, linked the new nation to classical Europe and republicanism.
- Artists like Thomas Cole and Frederic Church used arches in their work to comment on U.S. republicanism, its strengths, and its vulnerabilities.
- President Trump's proposed arch, at 250 feet, is significantly larger than many existing monuments and has been approved by a commission whose members were all appointed by Trump.
- The proposed arch is seen by the article's author as embodying plutocratic and autocratic forces, contrary to the historical use of arches as symbols of republican virtue.
- Contemporary artists like Cady Noland have used arches to critique the nation's actions, such as police violence and foreign wars.
- The Gateway Arch in St. Louis is presented as an example of an arch that, rather than representing republicanism, extols westward expansion and imperialism.
- The author suggests Trump's arch, like the Gateway Arch, uses sheer size to overwhelm viewers and obscure a perversion of a classical symbol.