On the Verge of War
Every painting in Chronicle of an Unquiet Age documents the defining events, people, and issues that shaped its moment in history. Created in real time as events unfolded, each work serves as both an original oil painting and a historical record, reflecting the belief that the news of today is the history of tomorrow.
TRTA-2022-039 | February 2022 | Oil on Canvas | 34" x 26"
This fourth work from America in Free Fall 2022, On the Verge of War reflects the mounting global anxiety that followed Russia’s military buildup near Ukraine and the growing sense that a major geopolitical crisis was imminent. Biden sends 300 troops to Poland and Romania as things heat up. "The Freedom Convoy" is moving across Canada to "Stop the Mandates." Painted in real time, the composition captures a moment when diplomacy appeared fragile, markets were uneasy, and the possibility of war dominated headlines.
The painting commentary traces in real time the collision of foreign conflict with domestic unrest. References to NATO allies being very nervous as war looms in Ukraine, as Putin threatens he is close to invading Ukraine. Energy pressures, border debates, inflation, public distrust, and competing narratives suggest a nation already divided while confronting another international emergency. Soros backed DA's Alvin Bragg NY and George Gascon CA have unleashed crime on Americans. Cops are being killed as the war on crime rages on. "Little Rocketman" in North Korea is firing off missles at 7 per month. The painting presents these tensions as simultaneous crises rather than separate events. The title conveys a threshold moment—when events had not yet fully erupted, but the direction of history seemed dangerously close to changing. As a visual time capsule, On the Verge of War preserves the uneasy atmosphere of February 2022, when many felt the world was approaching a decisive and unpredictable turning point. A national reckoning is certainly coming.
