WEI XINGYAO
(b.1941) Weinan City, Shaanxi, China

"Bright Future: Hua Guofeng Studies Mao’s Writings during the1942 Rectification Campaign (Version 2)" 1976
color woodcut, 34 5/8"” x 24 3/8"”

Produced in the wake of Mao’s death, this woodcut promotes Hua Guofeng as Mao’s legitimate successor. The piece depicts Hua studying Mao’s writings during the Rectification Campaign of 1942, a campaign to re-educate Communist Party cadre and solidify party loyalty.

The notable difference in this version is Hua’s wide smile. The first version was criticized for not being sufficiently idealistic. The socialist idealism style of art is typified by its use of bright colors and people with broad smiles—exuding the necessary revolutionary optimism required of art produced during the Cultural Revolution.