When I met MUSKBOY for the first time in a Berlin café at the opening of some of his graphic works of Asian faces I immediately felt his sweetness and true character. He is not a made-up personality, provocateur, or attitude artist who uses art as an excuse for a bohemian life style. Since meeting MUSKBOY I have enjoyed watching his work grow and become more disciplined as he develops his skills in different forms and materials. He grows slowly with Asian patience and the steady will to embody humans with the beauty he sees in us. He is not afraid of using decorative symbols or illustrating motives. His use of Maoist and Chinese traditional symbols and writings are his subtle way of inspiring an “EROTIC REVOLUTION”. MUSKBOY has shown his art in Europe and America without any problems. He was officially invited to show his work at the OLYMPIC GAMES 2008 in BEJING. One day before the opening his pictures were censored by the Chinese Government.
Works
Muskboy works visualise the longing for an open-minded gay bi les transgender – friendly China. Unfortunately exposing any explicit homo- and or transsexuality in Arts within present Chinese culture is prohibited. To safeguard himself, his beloved family and his befriended pioneering gay bi les and transsexual community against the arbitrariness of Chinese authorities the artist prefers his pseudonym muskboy. Muskboy wanders in his dreamy, mythological and erotic world of his art. The paintings are his songs, poems and novels, he draws like dancing and singing, he’s in raptures over the eternal beauty of the life. In his artworks man enjoys not only with the eyes, man can also smell the fragrance, hear the melody and read the stories, because each work of Muskboy is alive.
Musk Ming’s erotic paintings are full of humour and a deep sense of what beauty can be. It does not matter if it is gay or lesbian or hetero. They celebrate the old gods as well as the young citizens of our times. A body is not an assembly of trained muscles but a sweet touch of the warmth of a human skin.
Censored in China
At the day of the grand-opening the Ministry of Culture of VR CHINA excluded the watercolour drawing GO WEST! by Beijing-born artist Muskboy from its official Olympic exhibition.
A few days later the Ministry of Culture of VR CHINA also decided that the artwork GO WEST! will not be published in the official Olympic Fine Arts 2008 catalogue, and also will be excluded from the accompanying tour around the globe.
He Zhenliang, Chairman of the I.O.C – Commission for Culture and Olympic Education, announced the Olympic Fine Arts 2008 would play a significant role in presenting Chinese culture, arts, custom and development. „It’s the first time that the I.O.C has given its patronage to such an event, which is a good platform for east-west cultural communication,“ he said.
Why did the Ministery of Culture exclude the artwork GO WEST! created by Muskboy from its Olympic Fine Arts 2008 exhibition?
The organizing committee of Olympic Fine Arts 2008 selected GO WEST! (created by Beijing-born artist Muskboy) for its official exhibition during 29th Olympic Games in VR CHINA – Beijing.
According to a spokesman of the organizing committee an official of the Ministry of Culture did turn up shortly before the grand-opening and decided, that the artwork GO WEST! created by Muskboy should be excluded immediately from the official Olympiad exhibition.
The organizing committee of Olympic Fine Arts 2008 informed the Chinese interpreter of Agency Yorckberlin, that the artwork GO WEST! created by Muskboy is apparently „too political for the the Ministry of Culture“. For example the symbols of the Chinese flag on the underwear alias bathing slip is inappropriate. The Ministry of Culture should allow its „use“ within Arts. ( Apparently a law informs about the correct use of these symbols ).
Anyway, out of a well-addressed mood, Agency Yorckberlin suggested provocatively ( agreed with the artist ), that the Ministry of Culture does have the permission to re-colour the swimming slip alias underwear non-politically ,. – )
Shortly after, the Chinese interpreter of Agency Yorckberlin was informed by a spokesman of the organizing committee of Olympic Fine Arts 2008 exhibition, that the Ministry of Culture is going to ignore any communication regarding the artwork GO WEST!. The same spokesman frankly informed the Chinese interpreter of Agency Yorckberlin, that the Ministry of Culture is apparently not amused about male nudes too, ( especially the one with the butt exposed and a male hand, probably touching another butt ) in front of the Chinese flag.
Besides, the resting young man seems to be (according to the Ministry of Culture ) too powerless.
International Olympic Committee first held the Olympic sports and art contest in Sydney for the 2000 Games. The exhibition is hosted by the IOC and supported by the Ministry of Culture of China. It is a major component of the concept of the „People’s Olympics“ and apparently a key task of the Ministry of Culture.
The exhibition is themed China and the world with the slogan The arts complete the spirit of the Olympic Games. It aimed to represent the allure of Chinese arts and culture and sought to symbolize the joining of all the world’s culture, according to a statement on its official website.
The exhibition is divided into two phases: The first phase is scheduled from August 12th-18th at the China International Exhibition Center; the second phase will span from August 20th to September 17th at the Beijing Working People’s Cultural Palace. A smaller version is sheduled for a tour of China and other parts of the world later.
Li Changchun, a member of the Central Committee Political Bureau, Jacques Rogge, International Olympic Committee (IOC) president and Juan Antonio Samaranch, IOC honorary president, attended the opening ceremony.
On various requests of MUSKBOY and Agency Yorckberlin, the organizing committee of the Olympic Fine Arts 2008 exhibition confirmed officially, that the artwork „Go West!“ „was denied“, and „can not exhibit in the formal exhibition“. The international department of Organizing Committee of OFA 2008 wishes no negative feedback and „another chance to cooperate again in art and culture“.