Liberte, Egalite, Cable TV
Liberte, Egalite, Cable TV
Year: June 2018
Location: Barbican Center, Paris, France
Around 20 June 2018 (World Refugee Day), Banksy took aim at France for what has been seen as its poor management of the refugee crisis. At that occasion, Banksy left France with a few poignant murals.
Probably one of the most provocative murals in the series, Liberte, Egalite, Cable TV, is a reinterpretation of the famous historical painting by Jacques-Louis David, “Napoleon Crossing the Alps”. This painting is a canon of art history in France representing Napoleon on his war horse conquering Europe, a true symbol of power and influence…
In Banksy‘s version, Napoleon is sitting on his horse with a long red cape covering him completely. The title Banksy gave it on his Instagram account is equally evocative and deep. This mural appears in a neighborhood with a large immigrant population.
By covering the rider with his own cape, Banksy is commenting on the current misguided way the government is leading the country, blinding people with propaganda and false promises.
The red cape might also reference the country’s so-called “Burka Ban” which was introduced by the French government in 2010. The law prohibited the covering of the face in public, including with religious garments such as the full burka or niqabs worn by some female Muslims.
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