LE GRAND GUIDE ET EDUCATEUR DU PEUPLE STUPEFIANT

Intervention on a large mail art envelope, now this was fun to do, certainly if you understand my French title! I mailed this to Ottmar Bergmann in Sweden as contribution to his "working worlds" project together with this letter:

Brussels, 20 April 2011

Dear Ottmar,

Thank you for your latest contribution to "The book of Ann" (Ann as a little girl, very vivid!).
The included "Labor of Love" collage is an older work of which I'm very proud. I found the original by accident in my archives (thought I sent it to a Sun project in Japan, must have mailed them a copy). So I can now send you the original as a contribution to "Working Worlds".

The painting on the envelope is a satire against the self proclaimed leaders and educators of the working people, so an open attack to the leaders of socialist & communist & christian workers parties, trade union officials and so on.
Emancipation of the people is giving them the control of their own lives, of their own workplaces and neighborhoods.
Self determination and workers control: YES !!!
Developing ties of dependency (that you need or depend of the goodwill of educated trade union & political leaders): NO !!!

Okay, don't take me too seriously also.
I was born in 1954, so I'm a post 1968 generation abomination (hihi).
That says a lot about me, about some dreams lost, some dreams crushed, about some dreams buried by the reality of "the unbearable lightness of being" (as Kundera said it)

Take care,

Guido

The painting resulted also in a fire work of communications between Diane Keys(USA) and myself on IUOMA. These conversations are here reproduced:

Comment by Diane Keys on April 18, 2011 at 5:05pm
The great educator? is he the devil?

Comment by Guido Vermeulen on April 19, 2011 at 9:10p
Hahaha, the image looked like a great Danish dog, or a preacher or a pope. It made me reflect on all these assholes who pretend they "guide and educate us". The whole political class, all these self declared professionals of power and authority, so, yeah, the devil is one of them (but a minor one, he's a "fallen angel" according the christian myth, so I feel compassion for the poor sod). I don't have hower empathy for our political and religious leaders. The tile is also a direct reference to "communist leaders", believe it or not but they called themselves like that, even obscure maoist groups in Europe self proclaimed that title. I remember in the seventies a guy called Arnoldo Matos (he was leader of a maoist student organization) and after the fall of fascism in 1974 Lissabon was covered with huge posters with his picture and the title "o grando dirigente and educador do povo Portugues" (the great leader and educator of the Portuguese people) I nearly peed my pants from laughter !!!

Comment by Diane Keys on April 20, 2011 at 3:29pm
That's funny because I first saw your title as 'stupify' which has lots of ramifications sounds like stunned flies. The powers that be in education want to make good little soldiers. Above is a pic being circulated by those who believe the US is becoming a fascist state--military industrialized complex married with organized religion. Men are far too corruptible to handle vast amounts of power.

Comment by Guido Vermeulen on April 21
Hi Diane,
Well, I always follow what Noam Chomsky is telling us. He perceives Obama as worse than Bush Jr even. I mailed my painted envelope now to Ottmar Bergmann in Sweden (not on IUOMA, he has a project on "working worlds" and explained the context of the work in a letter (you can read it on my blog http://guidovermeulen.blogspot.com)
If you agree I'll add our email exchanges too as an extra.
Stupéfiant, yes there is the element of stupid or sillyness but also drugs (la brigade des stupéfiants is the anti drugs brigade); people are drugged by their leaders all the time. It's also a reference to the famous quote of Marx: religion is the opium of the people. I like giving my art work titles with layers of meaning, they must be meaningful, poetic or funny, otherwise I am not "happy" (hihi)

Comment by Diane Keys on April 21
Hi Guido, I'm great with that. I also submitted something to his call -my piece for working worlds was 'parenting'. Most of the world are happy to be sheeple-led by the nose, but it gives those of us who are individuals something to push against!!

Comment by Guido Vermeulen on April 22

Dear sheep,
we refuse to be silenced lambs!
Smiley,
G.

Comment by Diane Keys on April 22
Dear Sheeple,
Don't drink the Kool-Aid. Do not worship Humans. Everything Oprah Winfrey says is not gospel. You have been fed a steady diet of lies and mind numbing propaganda. Thinking for yourself will not send you to hell.
baaaaaaaa