Graduation project
Cute Politics
Kaiu Meiner
## “It is difficult to believe that people who present themselves as cute may actually have questionable intentions.”
We are often disarmed by all that is cute. In an increasingly tense political climate, it seems as though a general rhetoric of cuteness is being used as a tool by populist politicians. As a case in point, Kaiu Meiner analysed the conduct of UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson: is his bumbling behaviour and messy hair in fact a carefully enacted charade to distract us from more sinister intentions? Her cartoon of Mr Cheeky, who mimics Boris Johnson, illustrates this strange paradox. Appearing to be nothing but sweet and charming, we begin to dismiss the character’s odd behaviour. Does this reflect how we overlook strange decisions made by his real-life alter ego?