Political Art in China during the Mao Era
My previous blog post was on how the Mao Era affected propaganda posters in China. In this blog, I will be discussing how the Mao Era developed political cartoons in China during those times. For clarification, the term “propaganda posters” refers explicitly to posters commissioned by the Chinese regime in order to advertise a certain ideology to consolidate government power. In contrast, the term “political cartoons” refers to art created with political means in order to criticize a larger party and/or popular ideas such as the government and the ideologies it promotes.
During the Mao Era, political cartoons that challenged popular ideas presented in propaganda posters were scarce. This could be regarded as a result of Mao’s vigorous enforcement of revolutionary romanticism that threatened and discouraged individual and traditional art styles. Mao’s belittlement of traditional art styles was even more discouraging for individual artists because they often used traditional art mediums due to their limited economic status which only allowed the usage of cheap art materials. (Usually, traditional art materials such as ink paints and calligraphy brushes were much cheaper than materials imported from the West like oil paints.)
Although political cartoons that criticized Maoist ideologies were scarce among Chinese citizens, political cartoons targeting the previous Chinese government that opposed the rising Maoist ideals were relatively frequent.
A prominent group of artists that created such political cartoons was called the Red Guards. Red Guard artists often created caricatures to exaggerate and criticize the government prior to the Mao regime. These political cartoons exemplified the continuation of the guohua style in Chinese political art since the Revolution of 1911.
This style of ink painting, calligraphy, and caricature can be seen in Shui Zhujiang’s 1967 artwork shown above. Similar traits can also be seen in Chun Lei Hong’s 1966 artwork below.
Sources
https://kennedy.byu.edu/alumni/bridges/features/art-and-politics-in-maos-china
China Under Mao: A Revolution Derailed by Andrew G. Walder
https://repository.lib.cuhk.edu.hk/en/collection/crposter/1966
