This is a piece of artwork, “Sculpture of a Dead Woman,” from the art exhibit by Gregor Schneider called Hannelore Reuen. An ominously dense deluge of debate hangs heavy in the atmosphere of the art community. Gregor Schneider, a German artist, decided that his next piece of art would be similar to the execution of a criminal. The only difference is that there will be no execution and there will be no criminal, just death, and just art.
Currently, he’s seeking already-dying volunteers to lay in an art gallery, alone, in view of uneasily curious onlookers who anticipate nothing more than for the subject to take his or her last breath, so Schneider can simply capture what he calls, “the beauty in death.”
Controversy arises when critics and art lovers mutually suggest that the German artist is doing nothing more then making a mockery of death. “He’s just turning it into a carnival act,” says an online blogger in agreement with numerous opinions spanning the globe. A more open-minded blogger, on the other hand, suggested that, “Now that the world has abortion and death as art, it’s funny how [artists] never seem to bring life into the world as art [anymore].” All of the taboo surrounding Schneider may be unwarranted when other artists, Schneider’s predecessors, did things so taboo as to remove their own ears.
The monochromatic images themselves, part of a series entitled ‘Basque Chronicles‘, depict many aspects of terrorism that rarely make the evening news, including a man weeping over the casket of an ETA member at his funeral. The Spanish conservative Popular Party (PP) and the Association of Victims of Terrorism in the Basque Country have demanded their withdrawal. Speaking with the media, a spokesperson for the AVTBC said, “This show does not condemn terrorist violence.” However, despite the strong reactions to the exhibition, the question remains; should photojournalism condemn terrorist violence?
Does portraying a rarely seen side to the conflict pose a dilemma for those that actually oppose terrorist violence? On the other hand, does it merely present an alternative to the typical media stereotyping of what defines terrorism? I am sure that Bernad is not a supporter of terrorists or their causes, yet her work manages to make a powerful statement about the difficulty of the terrorists’ humanity. Impartiality in matters such as this is certainly difficult; however, is it the responsibility of photojournalists and their work to side with the majority opinion, or to tell the truth?
The swastika is an ancient symbol that has been used for over 3,000 years. (That even predates the ancient Egyptian symbol, the Ankh!) Artifacts such as pottery and coins from ancient Troy show that the swastika was a commonly used symbol as far back as 1000 BCE.
During the following thousand years, the image of the swastika was used by many cultures around the world, including in China, Japan, India, and southern Europe. By the Middle Ages the swastika was a well known, if not commonly used, symbol but was called by many different names
