- Anming - Provocation is nothing new in western popular culture. It came a long way from Gaultier’s 1990 Madonna bra to Lady Gaga’s VMA meat dress. Not to mention my bearded compatriot Conchita Wurst, who sang „Rise like a phoenix“ at last year’s Eurovision Song Contest and scaried the pants off Russian homophobes worldwide. According to global media, 25-years old singer Taylor Swift now plans to launch a fashion line in China with “TS” and “1989”, her initials and birth year, but a sensitive date in the Middle Kingdom. It is a new, Freudian approach to provocation. Only the clever people will see the emperor’s new clothes, only the China-bashers will understand the message. Has provocation ever been subtler?

The usual target of provocation in western popular culture was society, the aim more tolerance. Now, a new kind of provocation is emerging, political rather than social, eventually resulting in less tolerance. I agree, it is difficult to beat a dress made of raw beef. But the line between provoaction and offense is very thin, especially when it comes to questions of politics or religion. Good examples are the movie “The Interview“ or Mohammed cartoons. How lucky, that Taylor Swift won’t have to stand behind her message, she will shrug her shoulders and say “These are just my initials and my birth year”. Snore...

Swift, the second best paid female musician worldwide, whose father is leading the Swift Group at Bank of America Merill Lynch won’t risk to go without the Chinese market, she is a pragmatic young woman. She is so pragmatic, she once said "I have this feeling like if I were to open myself up to love, that would be a career weakness." Still, conspiracy theorists might appreciate the titles of her last four albums: Fearless (2008), Speak Now (2010), Red (2012) and 1989 (2014). I am not saying that people should keep silent about sensitive topics. But I doubt that a printed t-shirt is the ideal medium. One thing worked for sure: Swift got a lot of media attention for her coming fashion line. I am sure, her daddy is really proud. Ka-ching!

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At the end of this post, I want to raise awareness of some things in China that are pretty provocative, might even posing a threat to western values. My top two Chinese summer provocations are as follows:

The Peking Bikini: invented in 1946 by the Parisian engineer Louis Reard and named after the Bikini Atoll, the two-piece swimsuit was first declared sinful and even banned in many countries. It took twenty years of struggle until it was accepted in most western countries. Now, the history of bikini made a fatal turn with chubby male Beijingers rolling up their t-shirts on a hot summer day, widely known as the "beijing bijini".

The Sock in the High Heel: when I attended the open day at the Italian Embassy in Beijing, I realized what were the core values of Southern Europe – shoes and bags. Sure, Chinese are obsessed with protective plastic film, they put it on couches, tables, fridges and washing machines. But when it comes to socks in high heels, they are simply taking it too far.