Aussie artist attacked in US over nude Donald Trump portrait
The Australian artist behind a nude portrait of US presidential candidate Donald Trump says she was assaulted on the street by one of the real estate heir’s supporters.
Illma Gore made headlines around the world with her diminutive portrait of the controversial Republican frontrunner and says she has since received a torrent of violent threats.
“Today I was punched in the face by a man who got out of his car and yelled, "Trump 2016!" in Los Angeles, just days after I returned home from London just down the road from my house,” Gore wrote to her Instagram followers three days ago, alongside a photo of her bruised face.
“I am sad that this is the state of our America right now. I am sad that Trump, and many of his supporters, don't find words enough to express their opinions - they need walls, waterboarding and punches.”
Today I was punched in the face by a man who got out of his car and yelled "trump 2016" in Los… https://t.co/LbWJKUN2Xp
— Illma Gore (@illmagore) April 29, 2016
The US-based Australian artist went on to appeal to Trump to “stop glamorizing and perpetuating violence.
“Make American Decent Again!” she wrote.
Gore’s portrait of a nude Trump, named Make American Great Again, features a conspicuously, and provocatively, small penis and became an instant hit online.
It also stirred plenty of controversy, leading many galleries in the US to refuse to exhibit it.
The, piece has been priced at $1.87 million but has found public audiences at British galleries.
Hundreds of visitors queued to view the portrait in Britain but, with its popularity, came anonymous threats of lawsuits if it was sold.
The artwork has also been credited with sparking a particularly controversial episode in the Republican presidential race, when Marco Rubio and Donald Trump traded innuendo at a debate in Virginia in February
“And you know what they say about men with small hands? You can’t trust them,” Rubio said.
“He referred to my hands, if they are small, something else must be small. I guarantee you there is no problem. I guarantee,” Trump responded.
Gore has said she believes her painting was the inspiration for Rubio’s gibe.
