The Sistine Chukker
"The Sistine Chukker", also called "The Recreation of Man," is a large painting created for the ceiling of The Chukker bar in Tuscaloosa by artist Tom Bradford to pay off a $200 tab in 1974. The commission was negotiated by owner Bob Callahan.
The composition of the work was based on Michelangelo's "Creation of Man" on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican in Rome. Bradford referenced a reproduction cut from an art textbook. After a false start trying to draw in chalk directly on the ceiling, he changed plans and constructed the painting on sixteen black mat board panels. He spent around 74 hours on the work which incorporated elements of surrealism and psychedelic art.
The Chuckker closed on October 31, 2003, and the building was set to be demolished in 2007. Just before the wrecking crews were set to start Rich Marcks contacted then owner Will Harris about salvaging the painting. Since Marcks didn't have any way to transport or store it, he got help from Rod Walker, who made room for it in his Downtown Trading Company on Greensboro Avenue. Marcks labored to conserve and repair the painting there before it was unveiled as a wall mural on April 5, 2008.
That business closed before the end of 2008 and Bradford's artwork remained in storage for a few years before it reappeared on the ceiling of Egan's where it hang until that bar closed in 2021.
In 2023 the Sistine Chukker went on display on the ceiling of Bo Hicks' Druid City Brewing Company.
References
- Taylor, Drew (March 11, 2008) "‘Sistine Chukker' reappears." The Tuscaloosa News
- Taylor, Drew (October 27, 2023) "A $200 bar tab led to the ‘Sistine Chukker.’ Now, one of Tuscaloosa’s most famous works of art has a new home." CBS42.com