Tirana (AFP) – In a former memorial to Albania’s Communist dictator, an art exhibition is celebrating Donald Trump’s return as US president with works portraying him as Prometheus, Caesar, and the Wall Street bull. Artist Alvin Delvina says Trump — his “idol” — is the inspiration for the pieces in “The Triumph,” which include depictions of the US Republican in a range of historical and fictional scenes.
“It’s a work of four years, born of strong indignation at the attacks on a free spirit like Trump,” the 69-year-old artist told AFP. One piece, called “None of You Will Betray Me,” bears a striking resemblance to Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper,” only with each of the 12 apostles bearing Trump’s face. Another shows smiling European leaders on a lifeboat wearing orange life jackets, while a tuxedo-clad Trump plays a violin.
Most of the works were crafted together with the use of digital images that re-imagine iconic works of art and other notable scenes from history and pop culture. Italian tourist Laura Brivio, who attended the opening of the exhibition, praised the show as “a very interesting vision of the real world and art which is thought-provoking — whether or not you support (Trump).”
“Delvina is a committed artist who has chosen to present his (visions of the) truth with rich and dynamic artistic language, provocative subjects, and biting irony,” said curator Manjola Xhavara. The exhibition is housed in a brutalist pyramid in the capital Tirana that was once dedicated to former dictator Enver Hoxha.
In recent years, the building has been renovated and is now home to office space for the country’s embryonic tech sector and art galleries. Pro-US sentiment remains relatively strong in Albania, where American flags are a common sight in some areas. After Trump’s first electoral victory in 2016, a town in central Albania renamed one of its streets in his honour.
© 2024 AFP
