VELVET UNDERGROUND

Velvet underground /Barbora Bálková, Richard Cortés, Kurt Gebauer/ Exhibitions to mark the anniversary of the Velvet Revolution and the 80th birthday of Václav Havel

This year marks the 27th year since the Velvet Revolution broke out, and it is becoming more than certain that freedom and democracy are not taken for granted. Things are happening here and in the world! Those things cannot be overlooked. That is also why we dedicated a small hall of the gallery to Barbora Bálek's latest installation called Communism with a panda face.The artist reacts, among other things, to one of the Chinese taboos – the harvesting of human organs. She created an installation of cute panda bears sewn from imitation human skin and sewn together imitation human hair. The People's Republic of China tries to present itself in a friendly light to the Western world. It boasts a rapidly developing economy, a growing middle class and is at the forefront of business interests for its globally fastest expanding market. He presents to the West the face of a good-natured Chinese bear, which we know has claws stuck somewhere, but we are more eager to dig into its fur and cuddle with it. But the yin and yang colors with which his coat is covered reflect not only the light and dark side of the recent Chinese past, but also the current present. What China does not boast about is the first place in the number of wrongfully imprisoned people. Although China remains essentially a totalitarian state under the rule of the Communist Party, it has created a specific kind of capitalism that does not hesitate to monetize its own citizens, which it exploits as a resource for the organ business. These facts are ignored by our political leaders, our citizens are punished for flying Tibetan flags, the peaceful Dalai Lama, a friend of the late President Havel, acts like a red scarf to a bull to some politicians. In response to the March visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to Prague and the unprecedented harassment of Czech citizens, he also the peaceful Dalai Lama, a friend of the late President Havel, strikes some politicians as a red scarf to a bull. In response to the March visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to Prague and the unprecedented harassment of Czech citizens, he also the peaceful Dalai Lama, a friend of the late President Havel, strikes some politicians as a red scarf to a bull. In response to the March visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to Prague and the unprecedented harassment of Czech citizens, he alsoRichard Cortés . Under the title   Signs of the Times , other specifics of Czech politics in recent years are glossed over, especially the actions of the two biggest pushers towards freedom and the gains of democracy - the current president with Speaker Ovčáček behind him and the finance minister.

curated by: Nadia Rovderová

https://www.artinbox.cz/?p=3684