After seeing George Zimmerman lurch from crisis to crisis, I figured it's only a matter of time before he eventually finds himself behind bars. In the meantime, he's found new notoriety as a fledgling artist of sorts:
It appears George Zimmerman has turned to painting, and is selling his own, original artwork on eBay not one week after prosecutors dropped domestic violence charges against him.
Now the painting has a bid of almost $100,000.
The canvas painting appeared on the auction website Monday. A picture of the artwork shows a U.S. flag painted only in various shades of blue, with the words "God, One Nation, with Liberty and Justice for All," stamped in white letters on the flag's darker blue stripes.
Zimmerman's brother, Robert Zimmerman Jr., has confirmed the auction is real, and said the painting is, indeed, the work of his brother, who was acquitted of murder in July for the 2012 shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford.
The painting's starting bid was set at $50, plus an additional $40 for expedited shipping from Sanford, according to the auction page. As of 10:50 p.m. Monday, the winning bid was $99,966. Bidding was set to end early Monday, Dec. 22, at 12:55 a.m. EST.
Here's the painting in question. Standard issue patriotic fair. Not really something that would warrant a $100,000 bid, but the bidder's probably paying for the notoriety of owning a painting by a highly controversial figure.
However, I can't help but feel that I've seen that image before...
Oh.
I've seen people paint and draw from reference pictures. Under normal circumstances, this would likely be lauded as a great effort from a freshman-level high school art class. It certainly isn't worth a hundred grand in dead presidents.
But that's not the point. These days, plenty of designated bad guys turn to art for stress relief and a quick buck. Paul Bremer, for one. Then there's the contemplative shower scenes of a certain George W. Bush. Guys like Charles Manson have all the time in the world to create works of art.
Not that they shouldn't make art, but Zimmerman's efforts smack of profiteering based on his notoriety, even though the man himself says differently:
First hand painted artwork by me, George Zimmerman. Everyone has been asking what I have been doing with myself. I found a creative, way to express myself, my emotions and the symbols that represent my experiences. My art work allows me to reflect, providing a therapeutic outlet and allows me to remain indoors :-) I hope you enjoy owning this piece as much as I enjoyed creating it. Your friend, George Zimmerman
Or your worst nightmare if you happened to be a 17-year-old black kid on a dark suburban street. It just irks me that a man who wantonly chased down and eventually murdered a young man for the crime of being a minority in a place he supposedly didn't belong is not only allowed to walk the streets a free man, but also gets the chance to play up a sympathy angle, create a "kinder, gentler" image and profit immensely by tapping into the arts.
And the reason for the very first picture of this post? It describes exactly how I feel about George Zimmerman.