The Fredösphere

Previous installments of this series covered the 700-foot tall Jesus and Jesus' Graduation Picture as well as the Pilot Theme in revivalist hymns. Today we take turn down a different path -- a darker path.

This figurine depicts two Red Guards from China's Cultural Revolution forcing a scholar into a humiliating and submissive posture. The dunce cap says "counter-revolutionary" and the board says "Down with Counter-Revolutionary Capitalist." That red bugle thing is supposed to be a megaphone. Go here for several larger views.

The source is the bizarrely named zitantique.com which sells communist memorabilia from China. Go there and see all the posters and ceramics and Little Red Books they have. It appears the owners of this website have no nostalgic feelings for the Cultural Revolution, which is a big relief. Still, there's something deeply creepy about trading in this stuff. A friend of mine who married into a Chinese family said of these figurines ... well, I'm not going to put it into print, so I'll just replace the offensive part with a word chosen at random: frost. With that modification, he said, "this is frosted. Really."

Here's a description from another figurine:

This gruesome large Chinese Color ceramic sculpture depicts one Red Guard holding down an alleged Counter Revolutionary Leading Scholar. A unpleasant reminder of the Cultural Revolution, or otherwise known as the 10 Year Chaos, this sculpture described the common scene that took place during the Cultural Revolution where many scholars and experts were denounced Counter Revolutionary and were released of their posts, many could not stand the humiliation and later committed suicide. The Red Guard, as depicted in this color ceramic sculpture, is seen wearing a Cultural Revolution Liberation Army hat, a Red Guard armband, the Summer Cultural Revolution Red Guard uniform, and holding a gun on one hand, while on another hand, the Cultural Revolution Red Book. His one leg is resting on the shoulder of the Scholar. The Scholar is wearing a dunce cap that says the following: "Down with the Stinky Intellectual" and a white board that says "Counter Revolutionary Leader Scholar."

I hope no one doubts that this is religious art. As so often happens, the religious motivation overwhelms the aesthetic judgment, so that, although some of the posters still have the power to stir the emotions, the ceramics are unfailingly crude and repulsive. This is the original Party of Hate.

So, you ask if we can formulate a new rule: if it is bad art, must it be religious art? Well, when you consider Star Trek ... but I should really save that question for VORA Part V.

Labels: VarietiesOfReligiousArt