NEW YORK – When controversy looms on Wall Street, chances are that Geoffrey Raymond isn’t far behind, magic markers in hand. The 54-year-old Brooklyn artist has become a regular sight lately on the scene of big Wall Street fiascos, where he gives the public a chance to vent by scrawling comments on his oversized portraits of powerful corporate executives.
He spent Monday and Tuesday outside the Manhattan headquarters of Lehman Brothers, urging passers-by to sign his latest work, a painting of the investment bank’s chief executive, Richard Fuld. Sign they did. Bystanders filled the canvas from edge to edge with comments about greed and comeuppance.
“Blood suckers,” read one.
“See you at the soup kitchen!!!” read another.
Lehman Brothers workers were invited to sign, too, as they entered and left the building. Their remarks, recorded in green ink, ranged from wistful to angry.
“What a day. What a year. What a firm,” said one.
Another worker scrawled, “You are a coward,” next to Fuld’s visage. Called, “The Annotated Fuld,” the painting is the latest in a series that began when Raymond turned up outside the offices of Dow Jones & Co. last summer as the company and its flagship newspaper, The Wall Street Journal, were being sold to Rupert Murdoch.
It says so long and thanks for all the fish on the right side about midway up.
Hell yeah.
I like how Fuld received 70 million last year. And how does he repay the company, he bankrupts them. Gotta love corporate America.
So how many of these “poor souls” knew that what they were doing made no sense and was going to eventually blow up in their face? But charged ahead anyways because there is a lot of money to be made on Wall Street. All three networks should re-run the movie “Wall Street”. The only ones I feel sorry for are the service people. Mail room, copy room, cleaning, etc. The rest are reaping what they have sown.
By law, all such performance payments should be escrowed and paid out over 5 or 10 years to be captured by the government in cases of bankruptcy/bailouts. The excesses and corruption of our society is long term, obvious, and remains uncorrected with way too much smug and irrelevant admiration.
Madame DeFarge, you may begin your knitting…
Wow…these people are criminals of epic proportions and our ‘outcry’ is paintings and magic markers.
This country has no backbone.
America, the only place you get rewarded in millions for ruining milions of lives. The American business model is a pathetic rook, as well as the concept of scientific management. The philosophy of how little can we give you and how much can we take from you has finally come home to roost. This idiot vulture mentality will eventually destroy the United States; and good riddance.
Ah, art that is actually relevant to people’s lives. And recognizable as real-world objects, too! I bet the NYC art scenesters really hate this guy…
A bad artsy effigy is too good for him. They should make a bronze statue of him, and drag it around behind a truck until it wears down to nothing.
Anyway, Ron Paul predicted this mess would happen, almost five years ago to the day. And still Congress and George Bush (and McCain) did nothing about it.
Tell the truth – it’s the Democrats that have to allow the parachute because of all the money they’re recieved over the years. Obama on down.
I would like to take this opportunity to spread my thoughts on how to help reduce some of the mortgage problem we are facing.
Allow those who have 401(k)’s and IRA’s to make a one time withdrawal from their account with no penalties or taxation. This would go straight to a lending institution to either reduce or pay off a mortgage debt or allow those who need to make up a loss in housing price, refinance there home to a fixed mortgage.
Thank You,