Some freelance attempts at Obama iconography only end up being counter-productive. Instead of depicting Obama as the Messiah, or some benevolent socialist dictator, which is generally the goal of pro-Obama art, these depictions cross the line to unflattering — and even downright creepy.

This stencil seen in Berkeley, for example, depicts a very dour and menacing Obama, with a “lean and hungry” look to make the viewer feel decidedly uncomfortable. Luckily, some child (or prankster) has given Lean and Hungry Obama a bloody nose by squishing some berries on the wall, which undermines the menace somewhat.

Elsewhere in Berkeley I spotted this t-shirt, which has to be the most unsettling Obama portrait I’d ever seen. Why does it give me nightmares? Perhaps because it reminds me of the portrait of “Big Brother” in Orwell’s 1984?