Abstract
This paper focuses on the artwork of Chinese artist Zhang Dali entitled ‘The Slogan Series.’ Zhang uses a particular technique of text and image juxtaposition to engage with the civic political slogans that were plastered on the streets of Beijing on the eve of the 2008 Olympic Games. His ‘Slogan Series’ consists of large paintings: each of them reproduces the human face of a common person, either in red and white or in black and white, which is literally covered by repeated civic political slogans. The paper investigates the origin of Zhang’s artwork, shedding light on the aesthetics and socio–political implications of a double juxtaposition: in the government’s ‘new citizenship’ campaign, the slogans are juxtaposed with the cityscape, while in Zhang Dali’s work the slogans are imposed on the common people’s faces.
Highlights
Looking at Zhang’s large paintings showing human faces covered by repeated political slogans, one could say that the characters are eating these young men and women alive, corrupting their soul by denying any possible claim to prolong their existence as they originally were, and negating their opportunity to find a language to express their ‘right to the city.’
The artist launches his call to arms, perhaps hoping that somebody will hear and ‘save’ the human beings portrayed here from oblivion, oppressed as they are under the burden of civic political propaganda
Like the Decerteausian walker at street level, Zhang’s portraits seem to struggle to overcome the fixity of their pose and the prepared look on their faces. These human beings seem to strive to break through the overwhelming sense of oppression imposed by the slogans, as if they intended to set themselves free, escaping from the imposed textual grid and advocating their right to a language that allowed them to move in ways that are not fully determined by the plans of the organising body politics
Summary
In his work Painting the City Red, Yomi Braester explores the shift in visual practices that accompanied urban material transformation. Looking at Zhang’s large paintings showing human faces covered by repeated political slogans, one could say that the characters are eating these young men and women alive, corrupting their soul by denying any possible claim to prolong their existence as they originally were, and negating their opportunity to find a language to express their ‘right to the city.’. The artist launches his call to arms, perhaps hoping that somebody will hear and ‘save’ the human beings portrayed here from oblivion, oppressed as they are under the burden of civic political propaganda. The message is that China has reached a new stage of prosperity and surpassed many developed countries
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