Philippines Cultural Centre closes offensive art exhibition

Friday, August 12th, 2011

Kitchy symbols of pop culture, a crucifix, a movable penis and Christ do not mix well and have offended Filipino Catholics.

“May your soul burn in hell” wrote a furious Facebook user, one of many who have denounced the work of Mideo Cruz as offensive art.

Cruz intended the work to be a commentary on icon worship, however it has been labelled as “demonic” and he has reportedly been bombarded with death threats.

Official of the state-run Cultural Centre of the Philippines (CCP) closed the exhibit on Tuesday after former first lady and art patron Imelda Marcos along with politicians and leaders of the Catholic Church denounced the exhibit.

ucanews.com reports that Catholic Jo Imbong, executive director of the St Thomas More Society, said they considered filing charges against the CCP for violating the Penal Code.

The works that fanned the controversy in the exhibit called “Kulo” are images of Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary which were adorned with objects not related to Christianity – among others, a crucifix with a wooden penis and a Christ the King figurine with rabbit ears.

CCP chairperson Emily Abera stood by the legitimacy of the artistic expression and said the CCP saw nothing wrong with the exhibition.

“I don’t know if they’ve viewed the entire exhibit. Mr Medeo Cruz’s installation is one of the 32 artists and I think we should take it as part of the exhibit. This is part of the dialogue of the discourse, part of social community. Not all art is for aesthetic purposes…and that is the context from which the exhibit must be taken.”

Cruz is a 37-year-old visual and performance artist who has exhibited in such international art centres as New York, Paris and Tokyo, and said he had wanted to provoke a reaction but was surprised by the violence of the response.

“You can’t force people. But I just hope that when we look at something, the process doesn’t stop at the surface,” he said.

According to Cruz his work is about the worship of relics and how idolatry evolves through history and modern culture.

Posters of Christ and the Virgin Mary, crucifixes and religious curios recall the 300 years of Spanish rule that implanted Catholicism in the Philippines, while images of Mickey Mouse, the Statue of Liberty and U.S. President Barack Obama point to the lasting influence of U.S. imperialism.

“This speaks about objects that we worship, how we create these gods and idols, and how we in turn are created by our gods and idols,” Cruz said.

One part of the installation is a giant wooden crucifix with a bright red penis that can be moved up and down, a symbol of a patriarchal society where men are “worshipped,” he said.

Sources