Map with Fraser 1966

Editor: Here we have Larry Rivers' "Map with Fraser," made sometime in his lifetime. It's a striking image, a collage with a map backgrounded with this graphic portrait. What do you see in how Rivers uses this imagery? Curator: Well, the combination of Fraser's portrait with the map presents an interesting tension. Maps are instruments of power and control, historically used for claiming territory and defining boundaries. How does placing a portrait over this map comment on ideas of identity and place? Editor: That's fascinating. It’s almost as if Rivers is mapping Fraser, turning him into a territory to be explored. Curator: Exactly. And considering the time Rivers was working, how might the piece engage with broader discussions around celebrity culture and the politics of representation? The public figure as a landscape, charted and consumed. Editor: This reframing really gives me a lot to think about. Thanks! Curator: My pleasure, these interplays between the individual and the socio-political sphere are very telling.