OXON HILL, Md. — The painting sailed across the crowd to Elon Musk’s waiting hands. Depicting Musk rising from a futuristic Martian-like city while staring stately ahead with multicolored waves radiating from his head, artist and event attendee Seth Leibowitz’s painting helped augment Musk’s unexpected appearance at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Thursday.
Musk entered amid dramatic electronic music to cheers from the crowd as he walked around the stage and threw in a small jump with his arms in the air. Moments later, he brandished a bejeweled chainsaw gifted to him by Argentinian president Javier Milei.
Elon Musk lifts a sci-fi painting by artist and event attendee Seth Leibowitz. (Valerie Chu/MNS)
“This is the chainsaw for bureaucracy,” Musk said as he lifted it into the air and shook it.
The chainsaw referred to Musk’s task at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to slash U.S. federal government spending, a symbol Milei had previously used on the campaign trail to promote cost-cutting measures in his own country. The chainsaw was engraved with Milei’s slogan, “Viva la libertad, carajo,” which is Spanish for “Long live liberty, damn it.”
Artist Seth Leibowitz holds up a painting he created of Elon Musk. (Valerie Chu/MNS)
Musk talked with Newsmax host Rob Schmitt about his views on government spending and illegal immigration, laughed that he can’t be an asset to Russian president Vladimir Putin because “he can’t afford me,” and described the inside of his mind as “a storm.” When he left, he showcased Leibowitz’s painting together with the bejeweled chainsaw.
In 2019, Leibowitz first released a teaser on Instagram about giving the painting to Musk, describing it as a gift “to honor all he’s doing for humanity.” Leibowitz told the Medill News Service he was excited to see Musk receive the painting, but since it’s only 30 to 35% complete, he hopes to get it back, finish it, sign it and return it to Musk.
Artist Seth Leibowitz showcases the creative process behind painting Mike Lindell. (Valerie Chu/MNS)
“I’m also painting political heroes and people that are making differences in the world,” Leibowitz said as he gestured to stylized portraits of Mike Lindell and Donald Trump resting on easels in the convention hall opposite to Mike Lindell’s booth, which he had been invited to be part of. “I call them the Hero Card Series.”
