Orozco

Dartmouth College in New Hampshire has an interesting feature. Its library showcases some of the most subversive art from the first half of the 20th century.

Here, at an Ivy League college—the very essence of a prestigious university—sits a scathing critique of higher education, where ominous professorial ghouls observe a stillborn skeleton-baby. Then, they proudly display their prized possessions in specimen display domes.

photo: Miss Anthropology

This criticism of higher education might seem misplaced at a place like Dartmouth, but it’s also a part of a much bigger piece of work. This series of murals in the library is called The Epic of American Civilization, and its creator was José Clemente Orozco.

Orozco quickly became one of my favorite artists when I was in college. I was an art major, but quickly realized that I had all of my elective requirements taken care of (I wrote about this a bit here in my piece about judo). This being the case, I briefly considered pursuing a minor in a…