Artist’s Statement
Adoration of the Magi 2022 AD is a contemporary reinterpretation of Peter Paul Rubens’ baroque masterpiece, reimagined through the provocative lens of modern geopolitics. Created using Alix Cornelissens' signature technique—painstakingly hand-cut stencils and acrylic spray-paint—this piece replaces biblical reverence with biting satire, offering a densely layered critique of the global political landscape in the year 2022.
At its center, the Christ child has been replaced by King Charles III, freshly ascended to the throne. His sceptre is not regal, but practical: the famously broken pen he wielded awkwardly on live television—an icon of a monarchy caught between tradition and triviality. The new “wise men” no longer bear gold, frankincense, and myrrh; instead, they present the gifts of inflation: bottled cooking oil, a gas canister, and electricity—symbols of the soaring cost of living that defined the year.
Around the throne, chaos replaces adoration. The backdrop of biblical stables has been overtaken by militarism: nuclear missiles stand where once stood pillars of faith, and a tank thunders in place of camels. Vladimir Putin looms from its hatch, flanked by Xi Jinping and Alexander Lukashenko, in pursuit of a fleeing Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Poland’s leader cowers in the shadows—observing, yet passive.
To the left, a chorus of Western leaders warn of nuclear threats and instability. Joe Biden, Justin Trudeau, NATO’s Jens Stoltenberg, Emmanuel Macron, and Olaf Scholz stand in tense concern, while further right, the UK’s Boris Johnson grins with reckless detachment beside a short-lived Prime Minister Liz Truss—highlighting the farcical instability within British politics at the time.
The work layers history with absurdity, power with parody. What appears at first humorous reveals a deeper despair at the absurdities of our era—where power is hollow, alliances fragile, and symbols (whether regal or religious) struggle to retain meaning.
· Technique: Every character and object in the painting was crafted through multiple layers of hand-cut stencil, sprayed meticulously to emulate painterly depth through street art methods.
· Historical Reference: Inspired by Rubens’ Adoration of the Magi, but subverted with global leaders and modern relics to reflect our age’s own unstable devotions.
· Title: “2022 AD” places the viewer firmly in the present—where reverence has been replaced by spectacle, and global power plays out in televised absurdity.
