why is Right-wing populism so popular today?

When I made this portrait of the ex-president of the Czech Republic, Vaclav Havel back in early Spring 2015, the world seemed to be in a better place (even though tensions were slowly increasing). Overall, democratic leadership in western countries had a better position than in 2019: Barack Obama (the first black president of the USA) was still in power, the vote for Brexit hadn't happened yet, The Czech Republic had no oligarch as prime minister. On the other hand, Right-wing populism, and fake news was on the rise, but nobody really expected nationalism to be in such a strong position as it does in today’s world.

Who rules who?

Businesses and businessmen now dominated the political arena more than ever, controlling and turning countries into businesses and citizens into its employees.

Vaclav Havel would be a torn man in today’s political climate

I painted Vaclav Havel in a classical thinking position. He sits and stares vacantly, sad into the distance, thinking about what went wrong with democracy in today’s world. He fought his whole life for it in Czechoslovakia and was punished and imprisoned for seeking fairness. The fall of the iron curtain was a beautiful moment for freedom and human rights, and Havel was rightly so the first president of Czechoslovakia after Communism.

Looking back now, we can see how divided these countries have become and this piece for me is a mirror of not just how Havel would feel about the current state of western politics, but also how I and most people I know feel about the current state of politics. I composed Havel onto two pieces of paper, which symbolises him as a man of peace and equality, but a torn man, divided and separated from having inner and outer peace.

Today is the anniversary Vaclav Havel passed away back in 2012.

Let's remember him by not forgetting about democracy, but embracing human rights, promoting freedom of speech and exposing fake news. Not forgetting to wear short trousers :)