3. Dodge City 1968

Curator: Warrington Colescott, who lived from 1921 to 2018, created this piece, called "3. Dodge City." It's currently part of the Tate Collections. Editor: The whole thing feels playfully perverse, like a fever dream in pink and red. There’s this larger than life woman sort of hovering over a poker game filled with cowboy stereotypes. Curator: Absolutely. Colescott was known for his satirical takes on American myths and historical narratives. This print really does capture that, using these archetypes to poke fun at the Wild West. Editor: The overlay of the feminine form onto that hyper-masculine scene makes me wonder about gendered power dynamics and how the narrative shifts when you introduce female agency, even in this somewhat surreal way. What do you think? Curator: It’s a great read, very thought-provoking. It has this duality of grit and allure that really sticks with you. Editor: Exactly, it makes you question the myths we often take for granted.