Art gallery exterminates bugs, lizards from controversial exhibit
THEATRE OF THE WORLD: SPCA's demands too hard to meet: Curator, artist
The Province
Sunday, April 15, 2007
The curator of the Vancouver Art Gallery says insects and reptiles will be removed from a controversial art exhibit today, rather than comply with continuing demands from the SPCA.
A terrarium of insects and reptiles called Theatre of the World by renowned Chinese artist Huang Yong Ping drew the attention of animal-rights groups over concerns the enclosure was cruel to the creatures.
Chief curator Daina Augaitis said the gallery had been working with a veterinarian and the SPCA to make sure no animals were harmed in the making of the piece of art. However, she said, at a certain point the SPCA required more than what the artist was willing to do. She said the gallery remains committed to the artist's voice and ideas. A vet had recommended adding water bowls, changing the light above the terrarium and giving the insects a safe place to retreat.
Theatre of the World sits in a turtle-shaped terrarium beneath a massive wooden python suspended from the gallery ceiling.
The exhibit as a whole seeks to explore the notion of finding the balance between East and West. It will leave Vancouver for Beijing in the fall. "It is extremely disappointing that a major exhibition of this important artist's work has been overshadowed by competing concerns," said Augaitis. The gallery said more than 5,000 people have seen the exhibit since it opened just over a week ago.
Augaitis said the work is a microcosm of global conflict and power dynamics. The descriptive text accompanying the piece says "the work functions as a metaphor for the conflicts among different peoples and culture -- in short, human existence itself."
Vancouver Humane Society spokesman Peter Fricker has said the enclosure bears no resemblance to the creatures' natural habitats. He said the cage is designed specifically to spur aggression and it should be dismantled. And that's just what's being done. Almost.
While the animals will be removed, the physical structure of the piece -- a mesh-shaped terrarium looking like a turtle shell -- will remain in the gallery.
In a statement from Paris, Huang said all the animals would be removed to retain the integrity of the artwork. He said Theater of the World already met the basic living conditions for such insects and reptiles. He said further SPCA demands were unreasonable.
"They completely ignored the concept and ideology behind this particular art work, citing instead the doctrines of so-called 'animal rights' that violently interfere with the rights of an art work to be freely exhibited in an art museum," Huang said. Documentation of the events leading to the removal of insects and reptiles will be added to the display.
"Through public events and other opportunities for feedback prompted by the closure of this artwork, the gallery intends to encourage discussions about freedom of expression, power and censorship," Augaitis said.
© The Vancouver Province 2007