Mickey vs. Ali Baba

Mickey vs. Ali Baba
Oil on canvas
2003
230 x 135 cm

In this painting,I broach the issue of the American war against Iraq which started in Spring 2003.

In the style of a bowing match,Mickey Mouse,in his Hot-Dog corner,is standing opposite Ali Baba,in his corner,respectively,with an oil tap,ready for a (brief) fight.The gong sounds an Mickey,originally a seemingly positive comic figure,can but "see red" and,now gone fully out of control,knocks Ali Baba out.While he is doing so,he is trampling on the sausages covered in ketchup - which can also interpreted as blood.At theend of the fight,(evil) cat Carlo elects Mickey the winner and presents the next match: analogous to the US hybrid government,challenging a (pagan) God,in this instance (meant ironically),they will be challenging the god of the dwarves called Kalle Wirsch (the puppet play "Kalle Wirsch",performed by the Augsburger Puppenkiste,was a very popular early 70ies´TV series for children: a boy and a girl make acquaintance with Kalle Wirsch,the King of the People of the World Below ("König der Erdmännchen"),and,with the help of a root on which they have to chew,they turn as small as he is and follow him down in to his kingdom and,in course pursue several hair-raising adventures).
The painting picks out as a central theme also the presentation of modern warface as an optical event with the crucial deciding punch from various different perspectives:

at the top (under the Disney Channel logo) in the long shot;protusive in the middle of the painting;to the left underneath: Mickey´s outlook;next to that: Mickey´s face with baring teeth close-up;left at the bottom: the top view;and,next to this,Ali Baba´s view: he can only see stars now.