China: Dissident artist jailed for satirical Mao sculptures
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By Matt Ford with AP, Reuters, dpa
Originally published by DW on August 26, 2026
https://www.dw.com/en/china-dissident-artist-jailed-for-satirical-mao-sculptures/a-78502724
Sculptor Gao Zhen was charged under China’s “Law on the Protection of Heroes and Martyrs.” His supporters have called for his immediate release.
A court in China has reportedly sentenced a dissident artist to three years in jail for sculptures which satirized former Chinese revolutionary leader Mao Zedong.
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Which Mao sculptures were deemed illegal?
Zhen was charged under China’s “Law on the Protection of Heroes and Martyrs,” legislation which came into effect in 2018 and was strengthened in 2021.
The artworks found to have broken the law, however, date to 2005 and 2009, according to Shane Yi, a researcher at Chinese Human Rights Defenders who has been advocating for Gao’s case.
“The court has now sentenced him to three years … for artwork he made as far back as 2005, some 16 years before the law he was charged under even existed,” Yi told Reuters, calling the punishment “a very clear case of a violation of a person’s freedom of expression.”
The artworks in question are reported to be “Mao’s Guilt,” a 2009 bronze statue of the former leader kneeling remorsefully, and the “Miss Mao” series of caricatures which depict Mao with breasts and a Pinocchio-like nose.
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Researcher Yi said: “The only outcome that respects Gao Zhen’s rights is his immediate, unconditional release.”
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Edited by: Kieran Burke