Starving Dog in Art Exhibit
I got forwarded this email and I was absolutely horrified. I cannot believe it. It makes me so upset I can’t even deal.
Subject: Boycott Guillermo Vargas at the Biennial Centroamericana Honduras 2008
In 2007, the ‘artist’ Guillermo Vargas Habacuc, took a dog from the street, tied him to a rope in an art gallery, and starved him to death.
For several days, the ‘artist’ and the visitors of the exhibition have watched emotionless the shameful ‘masterpiece’ based on the dog’s agony, until eventually he died.
Does it look like art to you?
But this is not all… the prestigious Visual Arts Biennial of the Central American decided that the ‘installation’ was actually art, so that Guillermo Vargas Habacuc has been invited to repeat his cruel action for the biennial of 2008.
PLEASE HELP STOP HIM.
http://www.petitiononline.com/ea6gk/petition.html
It’s free of charge, there is no need to register, and it will only take 1 minute to save the life of an innocent creature.
Thank you for your time.
April 22nd, 2008 at 10:48 am
Hi, Margaret! I was forwarded this email, too, but when I checked it out on snopes.com, it said they still haven’t verified if it’s for real or not. At the very least they had some more information about it, including possibilities that the dog wasn’t really harmed at all. I’m waiting until I find out more concrete information before I sign the petition. Check it out:
http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/vargas.asp
April 22nd, 2008 at 10:49 am
thanks for posting about this, it is sooo disgusting that guy should be arrested for this heinous crime!
http://www.queersunited.blogspot.com
April 22nd, 2008 at 11:03 am
I really hope this is a hoax because there’s no way I could have gone to that exhibit without stealing that dog and taking that poor thing home with me. And, if I could find the artist, I’d rip his nuts off.
There needs to be a limit on “art”, even performance art, when it involves non-consentual harm to a person or animal. Absolutely sickening.
April 22nd, 2008 at 11:57 am
I really hope it is a hoax but me, the non forwarder, actually sent it out to many people including animal lovers that know more animal lovers and so on. My Mom volunteers in an orphanage in Honduras so maybe she can find out more.
April 22nd, 2008 at 2:04 pm
why don’t we petition and demand that Guillermo Vargas Habacuc be tied up and starved to death? that would not only be art, it would be poetic justice!
April 22nd, 2008 at 2:05 pm
I just posted this on my blog the other day and as a myspace bulliten! it’s TERRIBLE!
April 22nd, 2008 at 3:03 pm
Like that women’s abortion art last week, this is almost certainly fake. The public outrage is the artwork. Unless there’s actual evidence, assume it’s not real.
April 22nd, 2008 at 4:26 pm
If this isn’t a hoax, then that is one sick mofo. If that’s what qualifies for art these days, then DaVinci must be spinning in his grave. Just awful.
April 22nd, 2008 at 6:53 pm
I do not believe it is a hoax.
I think the artist would have spoken up by now if so.
There was a similar show a SFAI which filmed animals being bludgeoned. The show got shut down because of threats against the facility.
http://www.sfai.edu/News/NewsDetail.aspx?newsID=1291&navID=214§ionID=8
I have tried to avoid seeing pictures of any of this shit. But I did today unfortunately. But I know MC is doing a good thing by using this blog to show us to the petition.
Art by controversy is just so old and tired. I hope these places get shut down by PETA in the usual PETA way…Or offend some of the donors who are funding this repulsive exhibit.
April 22nd, 2008 at 7:28 pm
How on earth does this happen? I am sick. This is not fucking art…this is just wrong. Where is the decency? What are we becoming or what have we become that no one stopped this? As upset as I am Ms Cho, I thank you for giving me the opportunity to sign the petition.
April 23rd, 2008 at 7:24 am
[…] was sickened to read about this heart-wrenching story, which Margaret Cho posted in her blog. I am so disheartened by this random act of violence in the […]
April 23rd, 2008 at 8:51 am
Wikipedia sez the dog didn’t die and the deal won’t be repeated, for whatever its worth.
April 23rd, 2008 at 10:18 am
I sincerely hope this is not true. If it is a true fact, then I agree with Lisa that he should be the one tied up and starved. And the people looking at the art were just as guilty as the artist was because they did nothing to help. For him to be invited to do it again is just sickening and an outrage. I cried when I looked at the photographs.
April 23rd, 2008 at 8:37 pm
I am pretty sure this is not a hoax. Those pictures appear to be very real, of a dog that is obviously sick, sad and starving to death. Also, as someone else mentioned, the artist would have spoken up by now with all the controversy it has caused if it were not real. This is all over the internet, I heard about this 2 weeks ago and signed the petition then, and I wept when I looked at those photos. Even if the dog did not die, as it supposedly says on Wikipedia (which I don’t trust), it was still torture. If he wants to show suffering, he should chain himself up in a corner and not eat for several days. Whatever happened, it was wrong.
April 24th, 2008 at 12:43 am
Who ever is responsible for the treatment of this animal, I hope they suffer immensley!
That is disgusting!
April 24th, 2008 at 6:09 am
I think if the artist tied himself up on the rope and starve himself to death would be a much more powerful art piece, don’t you think?
April 24th, 2008 at 10:48 am
My understanding that it is a hoax. I really, really hope so. I can’t even think about this without feeling sick.
April 25th, 2008 at 1:12 pm
I think that suffering and death can be art. Maybe someone should tie up the artist and he can experience the ultimate beauty in suffering such a cruel death.
April 27th, 2008 at 9:17 pm
This is a hoax, right? I mean, this isn’t real, is it? Because if it is, I am going to ask the Costa Rican government to press charges against this “artist”. Torturing animals is not art–it’s a crime. Any freaking psycho can create “art” by killing a living animal. It’s not that creative.
May 2nd, 2008 at 1:55 pm
What the FUCK! I hope it’s not true, I think artist should make poeple stop and think about things that go on around us. We can use a wake up call from time to time. Art can open us up to see beauty every where and make us know that we can love with greatness. However, nothing should be killed or die in the name of art. Well this guy really made me stop and take a look. If he really wants to change things for the dogs, why not feed and love this beautiful being. If we want to make a change in the world we have to be the change. Love, now thats a powerful statement.
May 5th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
O my god………..
please please please say this didnt really happen. Im heart broken angry and sick.
I cant believe people would let this happen, if it really happened. I would have had a fit walking into something like that. Shaming everyone standing there, then taking the dog (by force if needed) to a animal hospital, then keeping it as my own.
Disgusting.
May 5th, 2008 at 11:41 pm
Thanks for posting this, and making the public more aware. I’ve now put it up on myspace to try and get additional signatures on the petition. Maybe someone should chain this guy to a corner w/o food/water for the sake of “art”!!!!
May 7th, 2008 at 11:13 pm
I was on a Margaret Cho blog spree and I am glad I stumbled across this.
I signed. I forwarded it to my friends demanding they do the same.
We all should seek poetic justice! Tie a rope around his neck and starve him.
May 10th, 2008 at 7:39 pm
Forget petitions, why doesn’t someone just go feed that fuckin dog. Sneak in a god damn granola bar or something.