Mischief Makers

Michael Moore, 2019

acrylic on canvas  
35 x 28 in

Joan’s put a jester’s cap on Michael Moore’s head in her whimsical portrait of the Academy Award-winning documentary filmmaker -- a reflection of the good natured political humor that leavens the serious issues he takes on in films like “Bowling for Columbine” (about gun violence), “Fahrenheit 9/11” (the war on terror) and “Sicko” (the sorry state of health care in America).

“He’s fun, clever, kind and very humble,” Joan says. “He keeps making films. He just doesn’t stop. And he’s very seldom wrong.”

In 2004, Joan and Moore became friends when she joined his tour of colleges in swing states to encourage young people to vote, singing “America the Beautiful” with him on stage. Her performance of the peace song “Finlandia” during the tour is a highlight of Moore’s documentary about it, “Slacker Uprising.”

In 2019, they saw each other again in New York when he attended the final concert of her farewell tour. “He was so happy and surprised when I gave him a shout out,” Joan remembers. “He’s a big sweetheart.”

And he’s a fan of Joan as a painter and an admirer of her choice of Mischief Makers, especially one in particular during the 2020 presidential campaign. Commenting on her “beautiful portrait” or Dr. Fauci, he wrote, “Two truth tellers, needed now more than ever.”