Words may hurt, but art can really sting. Particularly if it’s political art.
Witness the brouhaha surrounding a sculpture now on display at the Deer Lake Gallery.
The piece depicts former Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s cat-like head grafted onto a jaguar’s body. There is blood dripping from the jaguar’s, er, Harper’s, fangs.
Many readers railed against us for printing the artwork as a preview piece for the artists’ show. Some even compared the printing of a picture of the artwork to Charlie Hebdo’s magazine printing the cartoon of Mohammed that incited terrorist killings.
Really? Comparing Harper to a prophet seems a bit strange. But then, who are we to question what one person considers a deity and another the devil’s work?
In any case, this is exactly what some art is supposed to do. Make us feel, make us think, get us talking.
HarperCat works on all of those levels. You may hate it, or you may love it. You may also just wonder what all the fuss is about. But you’ll want to look at it to see why it incites such strong feelings.
We remember when rather unique drawings of Queen Elizabeth ignited protests. How could one ridicule the Queen? Tasteless as many of those “artistic” portraits were to many, they too made a point through art.
And, frankly, we’re pretty sure there are much more disparaging artistic viewpoints of Stephen Harper that have been created, or are yet to be created.
For example: The controversial portrait of a naked Harper reclining actually sold recently for $20,000.
The fellow who bought it describes the piece as “biting political satire.” Harper did not pose for the painting by artist Margaret Sutherland, entitled Emperor Haute Couture, which shows him reclining on a chaise longue, with a dog at his feet, as he is offered a cup of Tim Hortons coffee.
The buyer said that every time he looks at it it makes him laugh, which was worth the money he spent.
The artist who created HarperCat is unpreturbed by all of the fuss. He has made his statement – whether folks choose to be offended is up to them.
We didn’t put it on the front page to offend people. We put it on the front page, as we do with many things, to show folks what is happening in their community.
We wouldn’t have done anything differently. Covering what people are building, creating, protesting, enjoying, is just what we do. Some folks get upset, others thank us – it’s as it should be.
