The Lay of Fascists
Since the insurrectionist siege that befell our nation's very Capitol on January 6th, the threat of democracy's erasure, and the fascist cultists that long for it, has been renewed in the minds of many. As if to emblazon my point into one man, there was a white nationalist that made it into the building with a very particular look, all-too-familiar to me. An anachronistic horned helmet, large Mjolnir tattoos and other appropriated European pagan symbols laid across his bare chest, with a painted and shouting face infecting a place of good governance with foul ideology. Jake Angeli is a Qanon supporter and presumable white nationalist, exemplifying his belief in white superiority through the propagation of an over-masculinized vision of Norse conquerors. Even though the vikings did not have the same honor that modern tropes have projected onto them (their job was to travel and trade, but they are mostly recorded as thieves of coastal villages and monasteries according to the sources available), the Anti Defamation League has what feels like hundreds of pages dedicated to contextualizing symbols usually plastered over, or appropriated by hate groups. One quickly realizes just how many pagan runes, such as the celtic Triskelion, Mjolnir, Odin's Valknut, and even Germanic rune script itself are often stolen for an imagined association with white supremacy.
Most Nazi or fascist hate symbols are strongly associated with Germanic history, and the Vikings (which should be held as a seperate category from average Scandinavians at the time, who never raided or even left the home shores) are no exception. The projection of seafaring conquerors, driven to sea by a lust for new lands, riches, bound by honor and wreathed in titanic strength; blood and soil. It's an easy target for an ideology primarily associated with the Third Reich, which in pursuit of restoring its imagined conquering warrior past and national pride, sought to bring together all superior Germanic peoples under one state, and kill all others (usually in that order).
This piece shows a viking holding a skull in an almost Hamlet-esque manner, with more demonic and monstrous laughing skulls at his feet. Each one has been branded with a carved swastika, a mark showing their evil beliefs to the world as only Inglorious Basterds suggested. The figure was constructed with a wire skeleton covered in paper and tape, sealed in plasticine oil clay and sealed for paint with PVA glue. The clothes were given brighter colors, as was common for norsemen and medieval people of all classes at the time. The cloak may not have any true basis, as it was chosen (with its green color to match the round triskelion shield) with the Berserk unit from Age of Empires 2 in mind. Their capes, combining with intense nostalgia from my youth, felt to be a striking dramatic visual choice.
Most Nazi or fascist hate symbols are strongly associated with Germanic history, and the Vikings (which should be held as a seperate category from average Scandinavians at the time, who never raided or even left the home shores) are no exception. The projection of seafaring conquerors, driven to sea by a lust for new lands, riches, bound by honor and wreathed in titanic strength; blood and soil. It's an easy target for an ideology primarily associated with the Third Reich, which in pursuit of restoring its imagined conquering warrior past and national pride, sought to bring together all superior Germanic peoples under one state, and kill all others (usually in that order).
This piece shows a viking holding a skull in an almost Hamlet-esque manner, with more demonic and monstrous laughing skulls at his feet. Each one has been branded with a carved swastika, a mark showing their evil beliefs to the world as only Inglorious Basterds suggested. The figure was constructed with a wire skeleton covered in paper and tape, sealed in plasticine oil clay and sealed for paint with PVA glue. The clothes were given brighter colors, as was common for norsemen and medieval people of all classes at the time. The cloak may not have any true basis, as it was chosen (with its green color to match the round triskelion shield) with the Berserk unit from Age of Empires 2 in mind. Their capes, combining with intense nostalgia from my youth, felt to be a striking dramatic visual choice.