Date: 2000
Marco Evaristti was born in Chile in
1963, but has lived in Denmark since the 1980’s. He holds a Master’s degree in
Architecture from the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts where he was a student
of the Danish architect Henning Larsen. His architecture highlights influences
from Scandinavian, Asian, and Latin American approaches, and his art often uses
materials taken from nature. In the search of creating a psychological reaction
within the viewer, the materials Evaristti has used in his artwork have
included diamonds and gold, and even blood and sperm (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marco_Evaristti).
In his work, Evaristti seeks to challenge
people with the realities or taboos around them. He forces them to confront the
aspects of their lives, and the world around them, from which they would
typically avert their eyes. Thus, he creates both a psychological, as well as a
visceral, response. In this way, Evaristti aspires to his goal of challenging
the viewer to take a stand on serious issues concerning humanity
(evaristti.com).
In his exhibition, “Helena”
(displayed at the Danish museum ‘Trapholt’ in 2000, ten shite Moulinex
Optiblend 2000 mixers were set up on a simple table. The mixers were visibly
plugged in, thereby challenging the viewer to make the choice of life or death
for the goldfish trapped inside the blender. After one patron of the exhibit
did indeed push the button to power up one of the blenders, the curator of the
exhibit, Peter Meyer, was charged with animal cruelty, and sentenced to a fine
of 2,000 Danish Crowns. The judge in the challenged the notions of animal
cruelty by ruling that death experienced by the goldfish (which took a maximum
of one second) could not be called cruel or inhuman, and subsequently acquitted
Meyer, prompting the spectacular headline “Liquidizing Goldfish not a Crime” (artelectronicmedia.com/artwork/helena-by-marco-evaristti).
Helena was not about displaying
blenders or goldfish. It was about questioning and challenging ourselves and
the society around us. In his display, Evaristti challenged his viewers to make
a life or death decision; and in a way, he turned his viewers into their own
type of fish in blenders by placing them under the scrutiny of the media as
they made their decision. Evaristti made a statement about life in general, as
well. By placing the life of the goldfish on a precipice, he challenged us all
to see that we live everyday of our lives on a similar precipice, that at any
moment the power button on our own blenders could be switched on and each and
every one of us will have the chance to find out how humane our death will be. By
challenging our concepts of both art, and our places in the world, Evaristti
has clearly demonstrated his place as a Challenger of Art.
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