Che (cont.), a photo gallery: the irony of the icon

Culture, History, International Politics, Politics

First, an anecdote. Back in 2006, I was visiting Amsterdam. A friend and I were wandering around downtown, and came across an exclusive cigar shop. Very fancy. They had some of their most eye-catching products in the shop window. I am no cigar afficionado, I don’t even smoke, so none of it meant much to me. Something caught my attention though. What was that we saw? A true prize item. A large, beautiful wooden box (humidor is the word, apparently) of real Cuban cigars … adorned with a picture – that picture – of Che Guevara.

The box even featured, in a handsome scrawl, the famous appeal: “Hasta la Victoria Siempre!”

Price of said humidor: Euro 3,000.

It was designed, apparently, by the exclusive Parisian manufacturer Elie Bleu, which produces “some of the world’s finest humidors [..] handcrafted from natural or tinted mahogany and sycamore.” Each box features a “meticulously brilliant finish, a delicate process done by hand.” The Che Guevara range was, of course, a strictly limited edition.

The box in question is still on sale online: here, for example, for $5,000, or here for $4,785. Or you can order it here at the smart price of just 2,340 euro. Bizarrely, it comes accompanied by a Che-themed ashtray, available online for just $350.

Hasta la Victoria Siempre!

Hey, didn’t Jay-Z rap, “I’m like Che Guevara with bling on”? Now, Che is the bling. 

In the same spirit, I want to take you through some of the Che-related, Creative Commons-licensed photos on Flickr. I always trawl through Flickr to find illustrations for these blog posts. For the Che post from the other day, there was more than could fit with the post. Hence, this photo gallery. Oh, the humanity.

 

Taking the biscuit: Using Che to promote the stock exchange. Photo by patapat, used under CC license.

Be realistic: demand the impossible. Billboard for Swissquote, the Swiss leader in online trading. Discover the world of the stock exchange with the Swissquote Box for 29,90 Swiss Francs!

“Be realistic: demand the impossible”. Billboard for Swissquote, “the Swiss leader in online trading”. Discover the world of the stock exchange with the Swissquote Box for 29,90 Swiss Francs!

 

Mixed message? Photo by TobiasAC, under CC license.

The Finnish market recycles the Che icon. The photographer keenly observes: What I dont understand is the political implications: does owning this mean I love you, Che Guevara, so much that I want you to greet me every day as I come home or Up yours, Che Guevara -- I wipe my feet on you!? This, I do not know.

How the Finnish market recycles the Che icon. The photographer keenly observes: “What I don’t understand is the political implications: does owning this mean “I love you, Che Guevara, so much that I want you to greet me every day as I come home” or “Up yours, Che Guevara — I wipe my feet on you!”? This, I do not know.””

 

Gay Che, donning the pink. photo by s.o.f.t. under CC license.

Gay Chuevara, with pink beret: Part of the Art Below exposition in the London tube

“Gay Chevara” with pink beret: Part of the Art Below exposition in the London tube.

 

Che at the ration card office. Photo by Alex Barth, under CC license.

Ration card office, La Habana, 2000

“Ration card office, La Habana, 2000”
 

Le Che pour le Che. Photo by fabbio, under CC license.

But is it art? Street art in London

But is it art? “Cliche Guevara”, Street art in London

 

Unselfconscious irony: Che and Apple as desktop wallpaper. Photo by Jacob Dockendorff, under CC license.

Che and Apple Macintosh as equivalent market brands to confirm ones independent taste: Ive decided to use this picture as my desktop background.

Che and Apple Macintosh as equivalent market brands to confirm one’s independent taste: “I’ve decided to use this picture as my desktop background.”

 

Reconstructing Che Guevara’s Death. Photo by bartpogoda, under CC license.

The team members of a 2006 project of Zbigniew Libera, better known for his LEGO Concentration Camp Set

The team members of a 2006 project by Zbigniew Libera, better known for his “LEGO Concentration Camp Set”.

 

“Your Face Here”. Photo by satanslaundromat, under CC license.

Streetart in San Francisco: Ches likeness, Your Face Here

Streetart in San Francisco: Che’s likeness, “Your Face Here”.

 

Speakers’ Corner for the mute. Photo by Mataparda, under CC license.

Over three months, a wordless debate rages in Santa Cruz de Tenerife - click for large size

Over three months, a wordless debate rages in Santa Cruz de Tenerife – click for large size.

 

Living doll. Photo by TW Collins, under CC license.

In the series Little Thinkers, the Che Guevara stuffed doll.

In the series “Little Thinkers”: the Che Guevara stuffed doll …

 

Dreaming of a red Christmas? Photo by CorinthianGulf, under CC license.

In 1999, the British Churches Advertising Network published the Christ-as-Che image, which came with the slogan: MEEK MILD  AS IF - Discover the real Jesus

In 1999, the British Churches Advertising Network first published the Christ-as-Che image, which came with the slogan: “MEEK MILD AS IF – Discover the real Jesus”. One of the group’s members explained: “Jesus was not crucified for being meek and mild. He challenged authority.”

 

Blessed by Christ and Che. Photo by orianomada, under CC license.

Teaching the poor of Caracas to read and write in the Chavez governments Mission Robinson, under the approving eyes of Bolivar, Jesus Christ, Che Guevara and Chavez himself

Teaching the poor of Caracas to read and write in the Chavez government’s “Mission Robinson”, under the approving eyes of Bolivar, Jesus Christ, Che Guevara and Chavez himself.

 

Che at the last supper. Photo by lamusa, under CC license.

The Last Supper of Chicano Heroes, a mural by Tony Burciaga on the east dining hall wall of Stern Hall’s Casa Zapata, the Chicano-theme student residence at Stanford University.  Burciaga based his selection of figures in the painting on a survey of 100 Stanford Chicano students and 100 Chicano community activists, who were each asked to list their thirteen heroes. The top thirteen vote getters are sitting at the table. On Ches right are Emiliano Zapata and César Chávez.

The Last Supper of Chicano Heroes, a mural by Tony Burciaga in Stern Hall’s Casa Zapata, the Chicano-theme student residence at Stanford University. Burciaga conducted a survey of 100 Stanford Chicano students and 100 Chicano community activists, who were each asked to list their thirteen heroes. The top thirteen vote getters got to sit at the supper table; runners-up are standing behind. On Che’s right are Emiliano Zapata and César Chávez; over his left shoulder, with the guitar, is Carlos Santana.

 

Barcelona hearts Ganja, Ganesha and Che. Photo by desiretofire : music is the shape of silence, under CC license.

Streetart in Barcelona. Not entirely without logic, I suppose: Ganeshas dual role is as creator and remover of obstacles, and Che had his own ways of ridding his country of obstacles...

Streetart in Barcelona. Not entirely without logic, I suppose: Ganesha is the creator and remover of obstacles, and Che had his own ways of getting rid of “obstacles”… The placement of Ganesha’s axe (or paraśu) doesn’t seem entirely misplaced in that regard.

 

More chutzpah: the always polarised Italians get their choice of Che or Mussolini lighters. Photo by Daniele Muscetta, under CC license.

El Che vs Il Duce. How can you possibly THINK of placing these two charactes side by side with each other?, the photographer asks.

El Che vs Il Duce. “How can you possibly THINK of placing these two characters side by side with each other?”, the photographer asks. 

 

Che wants you to wear your jimmy hat. Photo by Libertinus, under CC license.

For love, use condoms. Title of the photo: Si lo dice Ernesto...

For love, use condoms. Title of the photo: “If Ernesto says so …” 

 

Che wears Che. Photo by @tone, under CC license.

What would Che wear? Streetart by Dolk in Bergen, Norway.

What would Che wear? Streetart by “Dolk” in Bergen, Norway.
 

Bien étonnés de se trouver ensemble. Photo by puroticorico, under CC license.

Che Guevara: Crazy with fury I will stain my rifle red while slaughtering any enemy that falls in my hands! My nostrils dilate while savoring the acrid odor of gunpowder and blood. With the deaths of my enemies I prepare my being for the sacred fight and join the triumphant proletariat with a bestial howl!

“Crazy with fury I will stain my rifle red while slaughtering any enemy that falls in my hands! My nostrils dilate while savoring the acrid odor of gunpowder and blood. With the deaths of my enemies I prepare my being for the sacred fight and join the triumphant proletariat with a bestial howl!” 

 

Pointing out the paradox. Photo by airefresco, under CC license.

Caption of the photographer: Gandhi vs. Che Guevara

“Gandhi vs. Che Guevara”.

 

Manga Che. Photo by Scout Seventeen, under CC license.

Captured in Tokyo - Los Dias Revolucionarios de Chieko Guevara

Captured in Tokyo – “Los Dias Revolucionarios de Chieko Guevara”.

 
What Che really stands for today? Photo by urca, under CC license.

Romance, adventure, passion. Cosmo for the counterculture.

Romance, adventure, passion. An artistic Cosmo story for the counterculture?

 

Circus act. Photo by Farruska, under CC license.

Hawking his trade on las Ramblas, Barcelona, Che is frozen while the Catalans around him shop

Hawking his trade on las Ramblas, Barcelona, “Che” remains frozen while Catalans shop.

 

From beyond Flickr …

“Top model Gisele Bundchen wears a bikini with the image of revolutionary leader Ernesto Che Guevara in Sao Paulo Fashion Week”. Guevara’s family was underwhelmed.

Gisele Bundchen wears Che Guevara bikini

Gisele Bundchen's Che bikini

 

Marketed in Australia: the Magnum “Cherry Guevara”:

Magnum Cherry Guevara

"Magnum Cherry Guevara"

 

This magazine cover, meant to highlight a report on graphic design in Cuba, came courtesy of Cuban graphic artist Edel Rodriguez, who explains that “A wired Cuban generation seeks the status of our logo culture as we seek the rebel status of theirs.” He also wrote that the iconic Che image is “everywhere, so it’s what I drew, along with tanks, guns, and missiles, cause that’s what was on T.V. there. American kids draw superheroes and cartoons instead. Che was my Mickey Mouse.”

The cover of the March 2006 edition of Communication Arts, featuring a report on graphic design in Cuba. The cover came courtesy of Cuban graphic artist Edel Rodriguez

The cover of the March 2006 edition of Communication Arts by Edel Rodriguez.

Rodriguez added, “My family that is still in Cuba just got access to the internet, e-mail, etc. They are just learning about these i-pods, tech gear, brands, etc. So I’ve started gettting e-mails from them requesting things like memory sticks, i-pods, things with brand names, etc. Years ago I would get letters from them asking for medicine or food. So, the idea that Cuba is slowly changing into a capitalist society is what came of this communication with my family back on the island. And this image was the result.” 

“Another thing that has bugged me over the years is all these people with Che t-shirts and the whole Che cult. People that have no clue what a cold blooded killer Che was and how many people’s lives were ruined by the Cuban revolution (Not well to do folks, but artists, musicians, poets, homosexuals, or anyone that had individual ideas and expressed them.)

“So, people here in the U.S. that are all underground and hipster and “original” with the Che gear and that all wear the same brands and listen to their iPods annoy me. They try to act all rebel and counterculture but they’re all fitting in in their own way. I think this image worked for me as a criticism of such an attitude as well. I am very well aware that doing anything with ‘Che’ is the biggest cli-‘Che’ ever.”

Gentlemen of the jury, your verdict? “The wider the cult spreads, the further it strays from the man. Rather than a Christian romantic, Guevara was a ruthless and dogmatic Marxist, who stood not for liberation but for a new tyranny. … Che’s lingering influence has retarded the emergence of a modern, democratic left in parts of Latin America,” The Economist argued passionately. In the LA Times, Ben Ehrenreich was more laconic: “I bought my 3-year-old niece a plush Che doll one Christmas. She abandoned him for Dora the Explorer.”

 

Branded Che: American investment in Cuba, by Patrick Thomas

"Branded Che: American investment in Cuba", by Patrick Thomas

13 Comments

10 Comments

  1. dlowan  •  Jan 2, 2009 @4:11 am

    It was just as weird in the seventies.

    Well, not AS weird….

  2. sozobe  •  Jan 12, 2009 @2:57 pm

    Damn, what a collection. Good going.

    The “Che as Mickey Mouse” comment was interesting. It seems like at some point it’s just about it being so iconic, something that can be messed with and people know what the original was and what the messing is. The pink beret comes to mind there.

    Anyway, really impressive collection, wow.

  3. Corinthian Gulf  •  Apr 23, 2009 @8:00 am

    I only now got around to seeing your Che story with my photo in it. Thanks for the attribution and for telling me about it. The story is great!

  4. BeanerECMO  •  Feb 3, 2010 @2:43 am

    How many of the people who sport Che’s image really have any idea what a murderous thug he really was? None – I hope. The real Guevara was a reckless bourgeois adrenaline-junkie seeking a place in history as a liberator of the oppressed. But this fanatic’s vehicle of “liberation” was Stalinism, named for Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, murderer of well over 20 million of his own people. As one of Castro’s top lieutenants, Che helped steer Cuba’s revolutionary regime in a radically repressive direction. Soon after overthrowing Batista, Guevara choreographed the executions of hundreds of Batista officials without any fair trials. He thought nothing of summarily executing even fellow guerrillas suspected of disloyalty and shot one himself with no due process.

    Che was a purist political fanatic who saw everything in stark black and white. Therefore he vociferously opposed freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly, protest, or any other rights not completely consistent with his North Korean-style communism. How many rock music-loving teens sporting Guevara t-shirts today know their hero supported Cuba’s 1960s’ repression of the genre? How many homosexual fans know he had gays jailed? Ernesto “Che” Guevara had all the characteristics of a ruthless dictator and opponent of freedom. He believed that the end justifies the means, and he fanatically adhered to this gospel. This “idealized icon” is the one who, as a modern day Grand Inquisitor, eliminated many of his foes with a single pistol shot to the back of their heads. And he is also the same one who authored these enhancing words printed in the identity booklets of young Cuban soldiers sent to fight in Angola: “Blind hate against the enemy creates a forceful impulse that cracks the boundaries of natural human limitations, transforming the soldier in an effective, selective and cold killing machine. A people without hate cannot triumph against the adversary.” “Crazy with fury I will stain my rifle red while slaughtering any enemy that falls in my hands! My nostrils dilate while savoring the acrid odor of gunpowder and blood. With the deaths of my enemies I prepare my being for the sacred fight and join the triumphant proletariat with a bestial howl!”
    “Hatred as an element of struggle; unbending hatred for the enemy, which pushes a human being beyond his natural limitations, making him into an effective, violent, selective, and cold-blooded killing machine. This is what our soldiers must become … ” Che Guevara

  5. dom  •  Apr 5, 2010 @2:56 pm

    @BeanerECMO….ask yourself how many Christians ( ie. “followers of Christ” ) emulate Christ. hundreds of millions of people wear crosses round their necks as a SYMBOL of something they vaguely subscribe to & so it is with Che. what he did is irrelevant…it is what he represents to people.

    Better that people wear a Che t shirt than a Winston Churchill or George Bush t shirt. All political leader’s hands are stained with blood, it’s WHOSE blood & WHY that matters.

  6. Nigel  •  Aug 5, 2010 @3:32 pm

    I,m with Dom pretty much. In this case the end justifies the means.

  7. קידום דפי גלישה מקוונת עושים רק בחברת קידום אתרים אמינה כמו חברת נט-סטייל . צרו עמנו קשר על מנת לרכוש שרות של קידום אתרים בגוגל בדרך הטובה ביותר.

  8. mc  •  Feb 2, 2012 @12:29 pm

    Saw one of the original prints of Che hanging in the home of the very wealthy uncle of a friend. I thought it was ironic.

  9. Mike Adalat  •  Jan 27, 2013 @10:48 am

    Che Guevara is a God and will remain a God for many millions of people around the globe.

  10. Jay  •  Jul 16, 2013 @9:42 am

    What’s next? A Pol Pot cutlery set? Offensive

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