This here (translates as ‘Chairman Mao Goes to Anyuan’) is a very famous propaganda poster from the Cultural Revolution — or, at least, that is what I learned when I read an article in the Economist on propaganda posters. As you can see, there is an image of the poster attached to the article and the first look I took at it stunned me. It looks perfect! Looking at it made me want to share it with others…
I can very well imagine why a picture like this has the reputation it does — Liu Chunhua really did make for a masterpiece here. The wind that has arrayed the clouds, the regional landscape, and the posture of Mao Zedong: it all makes for a very beautiful composition. And the feeling that I get when looking at it is one of strength and power, of longing and yet of a very determined being.
I wonder how I would look when going to Anyuan…
