An exhibition by a provocative Chinese artist that criticizes the country’s human rights record on Friday opened at a Polish state-run museum despite pressure from the Chinese embassy to cancel it.
The director of the Center for Contemporary Art in the capital, Warsaw, said the No. 2 diplomat at the Chinese embassy in Warsaw visited his museum demanding the cancelation of the exhibition by the artist, who goes by the name Badiucao (巴丟草).
“It wasn’t a request, but a firm demand,” museum director Piotr Bernatowicz said, describing the Chinese government’s behavior as unacceptable.
Photo: EPA-EFE
He said the Chinese official warned that having the exhibition could harm Polish-Chinese ties, adding that a Chinese representative also sent a letter of protest to the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.
Badiucao, who has lived in exile in Australia for many years, said the Chinese government accused him of hurting the feelings of Chinese patriots.
He said his works are in no way against Chinese or China, merely against the government.
The exhibition is titled “Tell China’s Story Well.” Its promotional image shows Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) eating human flesh. It also takes on other sensitive issues.
Among them are the Tiananmen Square Massacre of 1989, Hong Kong democracy demonstrations queled by China and what the museum is calling “the disturbing relationship between China and Russia in light of the war in Ukraine.”
In a performance for reporters ahead of the opening, Badiucao threw eggs filled with paint at a portrait of Mao Zedong (毛澤東) in tribute to protesters who were arrested in the Tiananmen Square protests who did the same.
He described his performance as a continuation of their struggle.
“They should be celebrated as heroes instead of treated as prisoners or enemies of the state,” the artist, born in 1986, said.
Beijing has exerted pressure in the past in an attempt to censure Badiucao’s work.
An exhibition planned in Hong Kong in 2018 was called off at the last minute following threats to the artist and his family.
The Italian city of Brescia faced veiled economic threats by the Chinese government in 2021, but went ahead with a show of his work.
The artist kept his identity secret for many years, wearing masks during public appearances to protect his family members. The long-held secrecy drew comparisons to British graffiti artist Banksy, whose true identity remains shrouded in mystery.
The exhibition is due to run until Oct. 15.
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