Grant Wood’s American Gothic: saved from obscurity by war and parody

Used as a tub-thumping poster for US values in 1941, this homage to a bygone lifestyle became one of the 20th century’s most famous paintingsAmerican Gothic has become a symbol as redolent of the US way of life as Warhol’s Marilyn. It’s also surely one of the most parodied artworks in the world, with everything from The Simple Life to The Simpsons riffing on it. Continue reading...