My final thoughts on this:
I get from this that the "art" was the guy bringing the dog into the gallery and seeing what the viewers did.
In this case, the viewers did nothing. How truly sad.
Art is a statement by the artist on the human condition.
much art is about the reaction to it, as much as the piece itself.
If the result of the exhibit is simply a few million people signing this petition that prevents this artist from doing something like this again, then what really is the point?
If it helps to bring awareness to the huge numbers of dogs and cats left to fend for themselves, dying of starvation and disease in the cities of the world, then perhaps it was a good thing.
If it helps to raise awareness of the suffering involved in starvation, and maybe leads to an understanding in us that we should strive to prevent starvation in a world where people throw away millions of tons of food a day, then I say this man is a hero.
In my opinion PETA and The Hunger Project should embrace this man and the work. The photograph of the starving dog, with people standing around eating canapes and drinking chardonay should become a poster.
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