DE JESUS, FRANCES JEANALLEN H.

BSAC 1-9 (CODE 1696)

AUGUST 29, 2020 S

Pablo Picasso said, “Art is a lie that reveals the truth,” and I think this is what Mideo
Cruz’s intention with his art installation Poleteismo. In an interview with GMA News, Cruz
spoke about the concept of “visual trauma,” where society sees its other self by looking
at its flaws. This, he stressed, was what he wanted to convey through “Poleteismo.” (“Post-
‘Poleteismo,’ artist Mideo Cruz talks about visual trauma,” 2013) And this is what I want to
talk about in this paper.

In his column, Isagani claimed that Mideo’s work is art in its generic definition but
not Art in its evaluative definition and I must disagree with him. First of all, why make the
definition of art (which is already complex) even more complex? For me, art is art, even
when it is bad, if it is something that is meant to invoke emotions or ideas. In this context,
Mideo’s work is art and true to Picasso’s quote, Poleteismo is a lie that reveals the truth.
At first look, Poleteismo seems to mock the holiness of the Lord Jesus but that’s a lie
because what he’s really mocking is religion and the hypocrisy of those who practice it.
With this, Mideo’s work has already revealed the truth because the reaction of those in
religious group was anger, even sending threats to property when it was said in James
1:19, “But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger.”

Another claim that Isagani made is that Mideo’s work is bad art and I agree with
him. Why? For me, a good art inspires a person to be better because the art in itself has
depth, even if it makes you uncomfortable. Poleteismo certainly made people
uncomfortable but did it inspire people to change their ways? No. A work of art becomes
good and even revolutionary when a group of people are inspired by it, just take for
example Jose Rizal’s works. I think the main problem I saw in Poleteismo that made
religious people angry is the lack of depth. It seemed so flat. It seemed like it was done
hastily and without hard work. It lacks power. Mideo failed in wielding the power of art
which is to penetrate the minds of those who don’t believe the same things as him
(Wangechi Mutu, 33 Artists in 3 Acts, 2014) for he failed in making the society catch or
accept the idea he was trying to express in Poleteismo and this is why it would be very
dishonest for me to say that his art is a good art.

I am not a great artist nor an expert art critic so I do not dare to define something
as complex as art for it would restrict my views about it. Art is universal so I think no one
must limit anyone’s creative expression by saying it is not art. But when I saw Poleteismo
for the first time, the first question I had in my head is, “What is this for?” and in fact, that
question was not answered until I found a statement from the artist itself. I am just a novice
in the visual arts but if an artist has to explain himself to make people understand his work,
that signals to me that his work is bad art.

REFERENCE:
Post-‘Poleteismo,’ artist Mideo Cruz talks about visual trauma. (2013, May 10). Retrieved
from https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/pinoyabroad/307671/post-poleteismo-
artist-mideo-cruz-talks-about-visual-trauma/story/