Federico Solmi

In the Chinese Democracy and the Last Day on Earth video trilogy, Federico Solmi lampoons contemporary society and the self–destructive nature of mankind. In contrast with their playful faux-naïve aesthetics, the videos indict a male dominated, hierarchical world controlled by vicious politicians, corrupt businessmen, and ruthless corporations, as the cause behind the decline of human race.

The first installment of the trilogy, A Song of Tyranny, introduces a relentless and despotic  political leader, as he unveils his plan of world domination to his army. His political madness is captured in an interview with an inquisitive American journalist. In a stunning commencement parade under a red sky, he calls his troops to arms. Chinese Democracy and the Last Day on Earth, the centerpiece of the video trilogy, begins idyllically in the Garden of Eden and ends in a bloody takeover of Times Square. The invasion of America is all at once playful, imaginative, gruesome, amusing, violent and gratifying. Solmi dramatizes the ridiculous nature of mankind's lust for power, as the ruthless dictator annihilates the ruined planet Earth. The Return of the Prodigal Son opens with remnants of Earth's sick capitalistic society, now drifting through cosmic purgatory. The protagonist's spaceship lands on an unknown planet, where the hidden truth behind his success is revealed. However, the final episode of the saga exposes the folly of his ambition and a blind spot in the commander's gluttonous quest for eternal glory.