At a protest in Turin on Friday, Greta Thunberg appeared radicalised when she told the crowd, “World leaders are still trying to run away from their responsibilities but we have to make sure they cannot do that. We will make sure that we put them against the wall and they will have to do their job to protect our futures.” Some of us enjoyed the plot development from Stockholm schoolgirl to anarchist Thunberg. Her semantic choice recalled the late ‘60s New York City anarchist group Up Against the Wall Motherfucker (UAW/MF) who, among other actions, forced their way into the Pentagon during an anti–war protest in 1967, and supplied Valerie Solanas with the gun that shot Andy Warhol (when questioned about his role in the incident, founder Ben Morea explained, “I loved Valerie and I loathed Andy Warhol, so that’s all there was to it…. Andy Warhol ruined art”).
It is unlikely that Thunberg is aware of UAW/MF. She quickly apologised for her comments in Turin, writing on Twitter: “Yesterday I said we must hold our leaders accountable and unfortunately said “put them against the wall”. That’s Swenglish: “att ställa någon mot väggen” (to put someone against the wall) means to hold someone accountable.”
The incident nonetheless illustrates the role Greta Thunberg has taken on in popular culture over the past 12 months. When she sailed into New York, she was greeted by cheering crowds and endless reporters—Guardian Live Updates recorded her saying she would miss “sitting for hours and staring at the ocean, doing nothing.” Those who feel antagonised by Thunberg—Donald Trump most notably—feel accused by her, cite her as a humourless extremist. Those who see within Thunberg a kind of modern day Joan of Arc find hope in her, moral clarity and direction. On the cover as Time Magazine’s 2019 Person of the Year, she is depicted looking outward against crashing waves, in a kind of contemplative certainty. The sky fades into a soft pink, matching her typically utilitarian choice of attire—a pink zip–up hoodie, ill–fitting black jeans, practical blue trainers. Thunberg‘s dress–code is mass market, the kind of wardrobe that can be acquired at a suburban K–Mart, and I say this affectionately, for this is exactly its appeal. Hers is the threat of millions of suburban school girls rising.
This 16-year-old with Asperger‘s Syndrome, who stopped speaking for months and was hospitalised for not eating out of depression triggered by learning about the climate crisis (this period would later stunt her growth) exemplifies the dissonances of her age. As Simone De Beauvoir wrote about philosopher Simone Weil, another absolutist who underwent periods of politically induced self–starvation:
“She intrigued me because of her great reputation for intelligence and her bizarre get-up; A great famine had broken out in China, and I was told that when she heard the news she had wept: these tears compelled my respect much more than her gifts as a philosopher. I envied her having a heart that could beat right across the world.”The same could be said for Thunberg—the depth of her feeling, the hyperspace of her emotions, gives her fans (Or followers? After all, the internet has given us religious language) some access to their own hope and mourning.
To record Thunberg as Time’s Person of the Year, we compiled five popular depictions of Greta Thunberg.
Greta Thunberg, 2019, by Elizabeth Peyton
Elizabeth Peyton, Greta Thunberg, 2019, courtesy Sadie Coles HQ
American Painter Elizabeth Peyton’s Greta Thunberg, 2019 was the leading image of her Sadie Coles show. Sadie Coles gallery is located in Mayfair, one of the most elite quarters of London. Depicted in soft strokes in purples and blues, Peyton depicted a young and reflective Thunberg.
Reduce Speed Now!, 2019, by Justin Brice Guariglia
Reduce Speed Now! 2019, by Justin Brice Guariglia, courtesy Somerset House
An extract from a speech Thunberg delivered at the 2018 UN Climate Change Conference was memorialised at US artist Justin Brice Guariglia’s courtyard installation at London’s Somerset House in the spring. The work, Reduce Speed Now! presented her speech as text on 10 solar powered LED highway message boards—turning her words into a kind of aphorism.
Cornucopia ft. Greta Thurnberg, at London’s 02 Arena
On her recent Cornucopia tour, Bjork displayed a full–screen video address from Greta Thunberg at London’s 02 Arena. She told the crowd, “I’m here to tell you that change is coming, whether they like it or not. The real power belongs to the people.”, before telling them to enjoy their night. My friend described the projection as “totally bizarre, yet strangely comforting.”
San Francisco Street Mural, 2019, by Andres Petreselli
Greta watches over San Francisco in an 18m-by-9m mural by Argentine street artist Andres Petreselli, otherwise known as Cobre. The 32-year-old describes the work as “the most political one I ever made”. Twitter users wondered why the young activist resembles Vladimir Putin.
Greta Thunberg reacts to Donald Trump, 2019
Image via YouTube
When Greta saw Trump her face was like a young assassin. The internet rejoiced, naturally, and spawned countless memes – as well as a song from New York City metal band Suaka titled Greta Thunberg sings Swedish Death Metal.