"Formula of Autocracy", the art work I found from Michael Cheval, really impressed
me.
When I saw this painting from the first time, I remembered a painting mentioned in the class. That is "The Arnolfini Portrait". It was a record of the marriage of a couple. The man has traditionally been identified as the Italian merchant, Giovanni Arnolfini and his wife, Giovanna Cenami, but this has not been confirmed. This was a private wedding, the painter was a witness of this wedding and the painting acted as a marriage certificate.
Michael Cheval seemed to use "The Arnolfini Portrait" to be the reference of his painting, "Formula of Autocracy". In this painting, most of the objects, people and structure were the same. However, there were two men instead of a couple. They seem to be the same person, who is Putin, the president of Russia. In the painting, Putin grasped another Putin’s hand and he was taking an oath. Also, there was a crown on the ground instead of a dog. I think it is an ironic painting to Putin. It says that Putin just told an oath to himself only in a private environment instead of the Russian. The crown means the power and he is the king of Russia. Michael wants to mock Putin that he is autocracy, which matches the title of the painting.
Michael is a Russian. He does not agree with Putin’s work and thinks that he does not listen to others and the residents. He complains through the painting and use old popular painting as a reference. That is good to raise people’s attention. I believe that he cares about the politics of Russia. As a resident, we should care more about the politic and express your idea so that the country and the city can be improved.
