It’s the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, and I just found this very interesting post from artist Michael Mandiberg about his request to a number of reproduction painters in Shenzhen to copy Jeff Widener’s iconic photo of a man in front of PLA tanks during the Tiananmen Square protests.

Courtesy Michael Mandiberg

Mandiberg posted images of some of the finished paintings, all done in an almost uniform, bland illustration style, along with a quote from the negotiations for the making of the works. The suggestions about composition were funny, but it was most compelling to find that at least one painter outright refused to recreate the image:

Courtesy Michael Mandiberg

I remember going to rallies with my dad in support of the student demonstrations at Portsmouth Square in San Francisco’s Chinatown as a kid, and the ubiquity of the tank image in the newspapers and on TV at the time. To Chinese around the world, it seemed the tank photo and reproductions of the Goddess of Democracy were cherished symbols of a freedom worth defending. It was surprising to learn from Mandiberg’s post that this photo has been virtually eliminated from the Chinese media, but not surprising that the Chinese government continues to censor any hint of negativity in all incoming and outgoing communications. I wonder if this will ever improve.

Twenty years have passed since that violent government crack down on the twenty-something college students occupying the public square in pro-democracy protest. Enough time for the protestors’ children to grow up without ever seeing this famous image that was eradicated by the media. It lies cloaked lies cloaked in Google searches, behind the Great Firewall of China.

This famous image did not exist. This was one manifestation of China’s pattern of Internet censorship. Another pattern was that if a scandals breaks out in China, all webpages outside of China are temporarily disabled. During my month there, two regional politicians were caught in corruptions investigations. One of them was sentenced to death, and the other killed himself. The official reports glossed over the details, and focused on the new appointee. The New York Times, on the other hand, did an in-depth analysis, which I happened to read, as I was up at a strange jet-lagged hour. It was gone the next day.

Just yesterday the New York Times published a small series of editorials about the anniversary. And just now they are reporting on extensive shutdowns of most major communications platforms, from the NYTimes.com to Twitter. Ironically, that article will not make it through the firewall either.

Michael Mandiberg is an Eyebeam Senior Fellow and an Assistant Professor at the College of Staten Island/CUNY. Drawing Contemporaries, an exhibit curated by Mandiberg and featuring some of his laser drawings, is on view at Eyebeam until June 9th.

Mandiberg.com

Tags: 1989, censorship, China, Eyebeam, internet, Jeff Widener, June 4th, media, Michael Mandiberg, painting village, paintings, photograph, reproductions, Shenzhen, student demonstrations, tanks, Tiananmen Square.

image from the book, Vandal Squad, courtesy of powerHouse Books

In conjunction with powerHouse Books’ publication of Vandal Squad: Inside the New York City Transit Police Department, 1984-2004, the powerHouse Arena will host an open forum between former members of New York City’s infamous Vandal Squad and graffiti writers, with the intent of opening discourse on issues regarding the methods that the Squad employs and their impact on the lives of the writers themselves. Panelists include Vandal Squad author Joseph Rivera, former Commanding Officer Lieutenant Steven Mona, original Vandal Squad Lieutenant Ken Chiulli, graffiti legend COPE2, graffiti activist Ket, and street artist ELLIS G. The event will be moderated by Stern Rockwell.

Founded in 1980, the Vandal Squad’s mission was to protect the subway system from hardcore criminal acts of destruction. It was only with the Clean Car Program of 1984 that graffiti became the primary focus of this specialized unit. Using every means available, including the NYPD computer database, search warrants, subpoenas, and even vandals themselves, the Squad had to identify and locate graffiti writers who were often so transient they were referred as “ghosts”. These strategies, as well as concerns about the publication of the book, will be the focus of the conversation. 7-9pm, free. RSVP required.

Tags: arena, books, COPE2, ELLIS G., graffiti, Joseph Rivera, Ken Chiulli, Ket, NYPD, powerHouse, Stern Rockwell, Steven Mona, subway, transit police, vandal squad.