I saw this deeply disturbing note on the Vancouver Sun a few weeks ago. The Device to Root out Evil, one of the most though-provoking and visually enticing sculptures in the city of Vancouver, was rooted out of its location, a park in the beautiful Coal Harbour. The sculpture by Dennis Oppenheim depicted an upside down church, an eye-catching image that invariably led to a myriad of interpretations.I remember smiling when I first discovered the sculpture last year. It was my first week in Vancouver and I gladly sat to admire the sculpture's evoking power (I then took the second picture you see here). To me, the Device to Root out Evil represented the need for religious institutions to reform themselves, an urgency to "turn the house upside down" and reinvent their practices. I also thought that the sculpture could be a call to bury religion altogether, to root out the irrational evils of religious fundamentalism in an age where scientific thought is once again under siege.
Art exists to inspire thought, to generate discussion. The function of art is definitely not constrained to its aesthetic qualities. Art expresses the struggles and controversies of its era...it is never neutral.
Unfortunately, Vancouver Park officials didn't see the the true value of a sculpture that, at the very least, generated food for thought. To me, apart from its inherent physical beauty, the fact that this sculpture generated social controversy was its greatest value. Controversy can lead to thought and constructive criticism. It can lead to introspection and to a rethinking of one's core beliefs. To dismiss a sculpture's value on the grounds that "it blocked the view of some neighbors" is an insult to all citizens of Vancouver. Unfortunately, as Miro Cernetig points out, the rooting out of this sculpture shows that Vancouver has not yet shed its "small town" skin. It's simply striking for a city with such a cosmopolitan mix of people. (where is my dear Mexico City when I need it?)The Vancouver Park Board's excuse was cowardly, to say the least.
4 comments:
Es genial la escultura. Pero claro, controversia de lo que es evidente, que la iglesia está de cabeza.
Stupid neighbors... Estaba increible la escultura,... deberían de poner una en este país de mochos y bananeros... ladrones persinados!! jaja
I agree.. las religiones necesitan un update URGENTE... Yo en lo personal siempre prefiero separar la religion de la persona o suceso que la comenzó... y todas me dejan con la sensación de "a great idea gone the wrong way"... but thats just me.
WWJD?
WWJD indeed.
Nice statue. Interesting stuff. I do, however, wonder about the coherence (and/or danger) of the idea that the statue represents.
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