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Children – Victims of Adult Vices sculptural composition in Moscow

by Elena
Children - Victims of Adult Vices
Children – Victims of Adult Vices sculptural composition in Moscow

Children – Victims of Adult Vices- an ambiguous sculptural composition in Moscow

As you know, children reflect the behavior of adults. They absorb habits, learn from examples given by parents and other adults. They repeat both good and bad.

In the very center of Moscow, in a park on Bolotnaya Square, there is one of the scandalous monuments of the capital, which is called “Children – Victims of Adult Vices”. This is a whole sculptural composition, consisting of 15 sculptures. She appeared at this place on September 2, 2001.

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The author of the monument, sculptor Mikhail Shemyakin, said that he invented this composition so that people would think about their lives and the salvation of the future generation.

Children - Victims of Adult Vices
Children – Victims of Adult Vices

In the very center of the composition there are two children, a boy and a girl, about ten years old, who are either playing with a ball or playing hide and seek. Books with fairy tales lie nearby. They do not see what is happening around them, as their eyes are blindfolded.

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But these serene children are surrounded by terrible and ugly figures, personifying certain human vices. They can take possession of children’s souls and corrupt them forever.

Let’s take a closer look at them. From left to right:

War. This is a man in a gas mask and armor. He hands the children a bomb disguised as a Mickey Mouse children’s toy.

Sadism. The thick-skinned rhinoceros in the butcher's clothes represents this vice.
Sadism. The thick-skinned rhinoceros in the butcher’s clothes represents this vice.
Ignorance. This vice is represented by a stupid, cheerful donkey, which science and teaching did not even dream of.
Ignorance. This vice is represented by a stupid, cheerful donkey, which science and teaching did not even dream of.
Addiction. A thin man who resembles Count Dracula. In his hands he holds an ampoule of heroin and a syringe.
Addiction. A thin man who resembles Count Dracula. In his hands he holds an ampoule of heroin and a syringe.
War. This is a man in a gas mask and armor. He hands the children a bomb disguised as a Mickey Mouse children's toy.
War. This is a man in a gas mask and armor. He hands the children a bomb disguised as a Mickey Mouse children’s toy.
Poverty. A thin, pathetic old woman with a staff, begging for alms.
Poverty. A thin, pathetic old woman with a staff, begging for alms.
Exploitation of child labor. A bird-headed figure who beckons to work in his factory.
Exploitation of child labor. A bird-headed figure who beckons to work in his factory.
Unconsciousness. The stylized guillotine is the only inanimate sculpture in this composition.
Unconsciousness. The stylized guillotine is the only inanimate sculpture in this composition.
Alcoholism. Half-naked fat man sitting on a barrel of wine. He is holding containers of alcohol in his hands.
Alcoholism. Half-naked fat man sitting on a barrel of wine. He is holding containers of alcohol in his hands.
Alcoholism. Half-naked fat man sitting on a barrel of wine. He is holding containers of alcohol in his hands.
Alcoholism. Half-naked fat man sitting on a barrel of wine. He is holding containers of alcohol in his hands.
Children - Victims of Adult Vices. Theft. A wild boar who turned his back, as if hiding something. He has a bag of money in his hands.
Theft. A wild boar who turned his back, as if hiding something. He has a bag of money in his hands.
Children - Victims of Adult Vices. Prostitution. She is represented by a busty toad with elongated lips. Snakes wriggle on her belt, and her body is covered with warts.
Prostitution. She is represented by a busty toad with elongated lips. Snakes wriggle on her belt, and her body is covered with warts.
Pseudo-scholarship. A female figure, a caricature of Themis, in a cassock and blindfolded. Next to her is an incomprehensible invention on the one hand, and on the other - a two-headed puppet dog as a result of her experiments.
Pseudo-scholarship. A female figure, a caricature of Themis, in a cassock and blindfolded. Next to her is an incomprehensible invention on the one hand, and on the other – a two-headed puppet dog as a result of her experiments.

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