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Photo: Beijing National Museum
The Chinese Christian Drosten is crying.
A tear glitters on the cheek of pulmonologist Zhong Nanshan, who directed China through the pandemic.
You can see the age of the 83-year-old: the neck below the mask is wrinkled, his eyes are reddened, he looks worn out - and yet not defeated.
A mild light shines on his face from the front, storm clouds are clearing in the background.
Every viewer should understand: Zhong Nanshan won the costly battle in which he led the nation.
That is the message of the oil painting, 1.80 meters by 2.30 meters, the first exhibit in a special exhibition in the National Museum on Tiananmen Square.
Her title: "Unity is Strength - an art exhibition on the fight against Covid-19".
Art with a decidedly political mandate
The exhibition shows how the Chinese have to remember the pandemic according to the party's will.
Throughout its existence, communist China has always communicated with its citizens via propaganda art.
In a speech about the arts in 2014, party leader Xi Jinping called for artists to "carry the Chinese spirit and unite China's power";
From Xi's point of view, art is not free, but has a decidedly political mandate.
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