For decades, the story of Betsy Ross, the patriotic widow who sewed the first American flag (thirteen alternating red and white stripes and thirteen white five-pointed stars arranged in a circle against a blue background) and presented it to General George Washington in her Philadelphia parlor, was a staple in American classrooms. It turns out the legend doesn’t hold up to scrutiny, and most historians believe it originated in the somewhat-embellished tales that an elderly Ross told to her family. Yet the story retains a powerful symbolism. For this week’s cover, the artist Barry Blitt presents a cheeky take on Ross cheerfully stitching away at the true American idol: the dollar bill.
Growing up in Montreal, did you know about figures in American history like Betsy Ross?
Yes, absolutely. Mad magazine and cartoons on American television—channels broadcast out of Plattsburgh, New York, and Burlington, Vermont—were the pillars of my education. I’d have a better knowledge of Canadian history if my schoolteachers had presented it satirically, with any humor at all.
Is consumer culture distinctly American? What do your Canadian friends, who have affordable health care and schooling, spend all that extra money on?
I recall to this day having had a truly horrifying tantrum in a toy store until my mother bought me a Thingmaker set, so consumer culture isn’t solely American—though I suppose I could blame that incident on the American television commercials I was watching. Most of my Canadian friends spend their extra money on hot beverages and hockey equipment.
Many artists past and present have had tenuous relationships with money. Would you say you’ve become more business savvy over your long and successful career?
If artists have trouble with money, it’s probably because it’s (obviously) tough to make a living in the arts. There’s no narrative in which I’d ever be described as having business savvy; I started working on a collection of N.F.T.s the same week they became ridiculous. Editorial illustration doesn’t produce any magnates or moguls.
What’s the best money you’ve ever spent?
Well, I’m on my way to Montreal for a few days, and the Canadian dollar is comically low right now. Let’s see how far my (relatively) bloated U.S. bucks are able to go.
What would you do if you won the lottery tomorrow?
Hmm. I doubt there’s a lottery prize big enough to allow the winner to do something truly world-changing, like buying Twitter, say. But maybe I’d be able to acquire LinkedIn.
For more covers about money, see below:
“Shakedown,” by Richard McGuire
“Is the Bottom Falling Out, Dear?,” by Art Spiegelman
“Discovering America,” by Chris Ware
Find Barry Blitt’s covers, cartoons, and more at the Condé Nast Store.
Sourse: newyorker.com
