Disciplina marcial en la orden del puer aeternus (Homenaje a Pastor Hada) Print

[English version of the title: "Soldierly Discipline in the Order of Eternal Youth (Homage to Shepherd Fairy)"] Acrylic on Masonite gesso panel 47.25 x 29.75 x 2 in., unframed but with thin wood lathing to dress edges This work plays off a stylistic gloss on Shepard Fairey’s “trademark” image of André the Giant, with the word “OBEY” given here is Spanish, adding “...and lend me the warmth of your naked body.” The image is derived from a computer-generated degeneration of a photograph of Marcial Maciel, the founder of the Legion of Christ and Regnum Christi movements of the Roman Catholic Church. Father Maciel, from the Mexican state of Michoacán, constructed the charismatic movements around himself, and the Legion of Christ, whose patronage from some of Mexico’s ultrarich socialites and powerful elites helped it surpass even Opus Dei as the Church’s top fundraising group, served as a protective carapace for the incredible perversions that its founder and leader engaged in for over half a century. Father Maciel, who apparently had been a morphine addict and a predatory pedophile who cajoled altar boys into “lending him their warmth” to help him stave off his afflictions (which included unbearable pain—according to what enablers allegedly explained to his young victims—if the “good Father” could not manage to “unblock” his semen on a daily basis), was also a “father” in the literal sense of the word, procreating at least six children with different women (in some cases under false pretenses, hiding his true identity from the mothers by pretending to be a traveling salesman), some of which he is alleged to have abused as well. My conviction was that using the computer to “degenerate” the image of this morally corrupt perpetrator would approximate the degeneration of his image that resulted from his own depravity, and that the final result—closer to an FBI “Most Wanted” poster than a portrait of a holy man—might come closer to being a true representation of his character than any attempt at merely copying his facial features. The “soldierly discipline” referred to in the title is that which was practiced by complicit members of this religious order as they cloaked the corruption of their leader and perpetuated his impunity; and the “eternal youth” of the order is not some hidden mystery—like the secret of eternal life that Ponce de León was supposedly searching for in what is today Florida—but the endless chain of youthful victims, whose innocence this vampire sucked from them under the pretense of being their spiritual father. The punning reference in the title to the artist Shepard Fairey is acknowledgement of the source of the style and format in which this image has been presented; in no way is it meant to associate that artist or his work with the specific issues under consideration in my own work. In 2010, as this painting was being exhibited in a solo show at Guadalajara’s ex-Convento del Carmen, the Catholic Church itself, after a supposedly in-depth investigation, published its findings regarding the Legion of Christ’s complicity in the aberrations of its founder and spiritual leader, saying, in part: “[…] The Apostolic Visitation was able to ascertain that the conduct of Father Marcial Maciel Degollado has given rise to serious consequences in the life and structure of the Legion, such as to require a process of profound re-evaluation. The very grave and objectively immoral actions of Father Maciel, confirmed by incontrovertible testimonies, in some cases constitute real crimes and manifest a life devoid of scruples and authentic religious meaning. This life was unknown to the great majority of the Legionaries, above all because of the system of relationships constructed by Father Maciel, who was able skillfully [sic] to create alibis for himself, to obtain trust, confidence and silence from those around him, and to reinforce his personal role as a charismatic founder. Not infrequently a deplorable discrediting and distancing of those who entertained doubts as to the probity of his conduct, as well as a misguided concern to avoid damaging the good that the Legion was accomplishing, created around him a defence [sic] mechanism that for a long time rendered him unassailable, making it very difficult, as a result, to know the truth about his life.”

Print:Giclee on Fine Art Paper

Size:8 W x 12 H x 0.1 D in

Size with Frame:13.25 W x 17.25 H x 1.2 D in

Delivery Time:Typically 5-7 business days for domestic shipments, 10-14 business days for international shipments.