As most of you may know that this past Wednesday there was a bomb scare at the Royal Ontario Museum. What has come to light as of last night, however, is that it was an OCAD student that was in fact responsible for the incident that shut down the ROM, its surrounding area and streets, and an 600 dollar a plate AIDS gala.
The Integrated Media major and his final project for his advanced video class are the direct cause––intended or not––of a OCAD class project, a day later, he is now suspended from our school and is wanted for questioning by police. Although statements from OCAD have been released saying the project was in no way supported by the school, two instructors have also been suspended at this point.
Now I know not everyone is thrilled with the new ROM's architectural expansion, but really, just what was the point of this "art installation" gone bad ? The Student has told the press that he was inspired by Marcel Duchamp's "readymade" pieces and that he wanted to make a piece about recontextualization: the idea that the context changes the meaning of a piece of art; in this case, something that is "quite clearly not dangerous, but when you put it in a different context the viewer recontextualizes it": a fake pipe bomb, and fake YouTube videos showing its fake explosion. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olYjeFFnKFY
I'm sorry buddy, but how stupid do you have to be? In a time when the world is "ripe with terrorists" and everyone is already on edge I feel there are a million better ways to pay homage to Duchamp then place a fake bomb in the a public place. Oh, and leaving a post-it note on your so-called art peice stating "this is not a bomb".... not a legal loop hole.
What ever happened to painting?
This is Not a Bomb
1 comment:
It is a grand overstatement to call this guy stupid. Stupid no, irresponsible yes. Clearly no forethought was present but his main concept is grand. Recontextualizing ordinary objects is a fascinating idea and in a way shows the vulnearbility and fear of human beings. It is difficult for me to swallow that OCAD said they never supported his idea. The instructor had to have known to some extend his game plan.
I don't feel bad for the pople who lost a $600 meal. They should want to donate $600 out of the goodness of their being to a cause that is deserving. What I do feel horrible about is the fact that the AIDS organization lost $100 000 towards research, money that was to be profitted from by a silent auction to follow the dinner.
The student tried to push the boundaries and simply went too far. He was irresponsible to not do research and forward thinking and unfortunately a deserving cause lost a lot of money.
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