Few would attest the claim that cakes are generally pretty inoffensive. However, there have been few notably offensive cakes — or references to cakes — in the history of the culinary concoction. Marie Antoinette made perhaps the most famous offensive reference to the pastry when she allegedly uttered the phrase “Let them eat cake.” However, Marie’s cake fiasco may soon be overshadowed by another, greater fiasco — one that would make her turn her head in horror if it were still attached to her body.
Moderna Museet Museum of Modern Art in Skockholm, Sweden held an instillation Sunday to highlight female genital mutilation. An artist for the instillation produced what many are calling the most racist cake ever.
The cake was in the shape of a naked black woman’s torso. Makode Aj Linde, the creator of the cake, hid under the table holding the cake. He wore blackface and held his head above the table, right where the cake ended. Every time someone cut into the black frosting and red, velvety insides, he made exaggerated groans and screams as if he were a victim of female genital mutilation.
Linde uploaded a video of the instillation on to Facebook and of course, uproar occurred. The African-Sweedish-Association called it a racist spectacle.
The art was provocative by design, it was bizarre on purpose and no doubt it raised awareness of female genital mutilation. But still, attention whoring is attention whoring. There’s nothing worse than an artist who smears the medium of art in order to appear edgy and popular.
“In our view, this simply adds to the mockery of racism in Sweden,” said Kitimbwa Sabuni, a spokesman for Sweden’s African-Swedish Association.
He’s right. While the cake may have been meant to draw attention to the issues of racism and genital mutilation, it made a mockery of those issues instead.
I don’t care what color the cake subject’s “skin” is–this is one of the most disturbing things that I’ve ever seen.