#king george

[kaydragons]

Dragon King and Princess (part 1)

[sedghisprinkles]

i am confirmed to play king George

@crazyfuss

[mabeltanaka2026]

Mabel Tanaka and King George They are The Pets and Owners 😄

[mabeltanaka2026]

Eating popcorn

[mabeltanaka2026]

Funny Phone King George

[slipperybiscuits]

I've never been to England, but it looks about as depressing as Georgia. Raining all the time. Dreary skies. So moody. So dark and lonely. Must have reminded ole King George of home.

Get the Look ✈️🧳🚇

[kingof-imperfection]

listening to Hamilton while shooting fireworks feels like a canon event of some sort.

(SOMEONE HELP ME, IM THE ONLY THEATER KID IN MY FAMILY 😭 WHO WANTS TO PLAY HANILTON WITH ME?? I CALL BEING HAMILTON OR KING GEORGE!!)

[pennstateuniversitypress]

America 250: Art in America's Past, Present, and Future

As we mark 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence, we're reflecting on the complicated history and character of the American democratic experiment. We asked several of our authors to reflect on how their books intersect with this important anniversary. In this post, Iconoclasm in New York author Wendy Bellion muses on the tearing down of the statue of King George III and iconoclasm's role in our nation's origin.

There are few works of art so immediately tied to the Declaration of Independence as the statue of King George III that came crashing down in New York in July 1776. Hours after the Declaration was read aloud uptown at the city’s Commons, a crowd gathered downtown at Bowling Green and destroyed the huge, gilded figure of the monarch and his horse. Some of the parts were melted down for ammunition. Others were buried, concealed, and transported back to England.

But as I demonstrate in Iconoclasm in New York, the statue never really went away. Artists kept its image and its demolition alive in paintings, prints, and sculptural reproductions, and historical reenactors performed its destruction all over again in parades and pageants that continued well into the twentieth century. Museums acquired fragments, and auctions sold pieces to collectors. Even today, a new digital installation at the Museum of the City of New York invites visitors to take a turn tugging at ropes attached to an image of the statue.

As the United States prepares to mark the Declaration’s 250th anniversary, this vibrant history reminds us that iconoclasm is part of the nation’s origin story. We need only consider today’s debates over monuments, erasure, and removal to remember that national identity is continually formed and reformed in public spaces. In 2026, a colonial-era statue is still telling new stories. In so doing, it reveals how art has always shaped our understandings of the American past, present, and future.

Iconoclasm in New York: Revolution to Reenactment by Wendy Bellion is available from Penn State University Press. Learn more and find the book here: https://www.psupress.org/books/titles/978-0-271-08364-3.html. Take 50% off with discount code 036USA250.