In one of the more controversial contributions to A Magazine, Riccardo Tisci has selected the work of South African artist Kendell Geers, with a profound religious and political statement that adds a shocking gravity to the wider themes of A#8.

Pictured by Lydie Nesvadba, Kendell’s wooden sculpture of Jesus Christ is entirely printed over with the word ‘fucking’ in a mirrored form, the mirroring being the only subtlety to the work. Nailed to an invisible cross, the traditional image of the Christian saviour has been defaced with the modern blasphemy. The piece is a continuation of Geers’ exploration of the mythical, religious and sexual iconography of modern and ancient history. He explains his choice of swear words below, in an excerpt from his 2009 essay “The Word Made Flesh”. Many thanks to Kendall for his contribution to A Blog.

“Irrespective of its origins or etymology, Fuck is as profane and
offensive today as it was a century ago and its meaning has not
changed much although it has certainly picked up speed. Fuck always
seemed to suggest somewhat more than just intercourse or copulation
and somehow put a more animal or primal spin on the idea of coitus.

The power and magic of this mere four letter word is best exemplified
by the fact that even to this day it remains forbidden on MTV, the
fortress of everything transient, transgressive and fashionable. I
have long maintained that if you want to destroy something make it
into a fashion and that is precisely the function of MTV (or “EMPTY V”
as I prefer to call it) Every subversive concept or revolutionary idea
from Punk to Ché Guevara gets digested and destroyed into a three week
make over on MTV only to be then re-issued as a perfume or t-shirt.
And yet you still cannot say Fuck !

We call it a “swear” word or a “curse” word and perhaps therein lies
the key to its secret identity. We swear an oath or swear on the Bible
in order “to make a solemn declaration, invoking a deity or a sacred
person or thing, in confirmation of and witness to the honesty or
truth of such a declaration.” Similarly a curse is also ” a prayer or
an invocation for harm or injury to come upon one” or “an
ecclesiastical censure or anathema.” ” – by Kendell Geers