Chinese Artist Gao Zhen Gets 3-Year Prison Sentence for Mao Sculptures
Chinese dissident artist Gao Zhen, 70, was sentenced to three years in prison by the Sanhe City People’s Court in Hebei Province on Tuesday, August 25, according to reporting cited from the New York Times. Prosecutors relied on sculptures made between 2005 and 2009 depicting Mao Zedong in satirical or sacrilegious scenes, including images of Mao repenting and aiming fire at Jesus, as well as an enlarged bust with exaggerated features. The conviction was brought under a 2021 legal amendment promoted under PRC leader Xi Jinping that criminalizes perceived slander of officially revered “heroes and martyrs.” Gao, who works with his brother Gao Qiang as the “Gao Brothers,” was arrested during a family visit to Hubei province in August 2024; the article notes that authorities have also blocked his wife and son from leaving China despite international protests.
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This story was covered in Censorship, Looted Treasures, and Artists Under Watch