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| Seen above is artist Yu Buck's installation, "Fish," which had been on display at the exhibition, "Mourning: In the Wake of Loss," at the Jeonnam Museum of Art in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province since June 30. It was partially taken down, Tuesday, after being accused of animal abuse, as the goldfish in the IV bags were dying. Courtesy of the Jeonnam Museum of Art |
By Park Han-sol
An art installation featuring goldfish that are slowly dying due to being locked in IV fluid bags inside a gallery has been partially taken down on Tuesday after being accused of animal abuse.
Yu Buck's "Fish" had been on view at the Jeonnam Museum of Art in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province, since the opening of its new exhibition, "Mourning: In the Wake of Loss," on June 30.
The show itself has been curated with the aim of exploring how individuals have mourned and further sublimated their traumatic experiences of loss ― due to physically and psychologically scarring events like the COVID-19 pandemic, war and climate change-related wildfires ― into works of art.
Yu was one of 13 creators from both within the country and abroad invited to showcase a total of 54 photographs, installations and media works befitting the theme.
The work in question consists of 15 IV solution bags filled with water, each with a single goldfish swimming inside.
According to Yu, the strong image of such creatures facing a slow but certain death as they are locked up until the end of the exhibition on Sept. 12 is meant to expose the intrinsic violence and duality of human nature.
Humans praise nature for its beauty but aren't afraid to manipulate and harm it in accordance with their aesthetic tastes, he argued. The artist has previously highlighted the same theme regarding nature in other controversial works involving a swarm of dead insects that he killed using flypapers and glowing light.
However, upon coming across "Fish" installed inside the gallery, a number of visitors questioned whether the goldfish were being fed properly ― they were not ― and raised issues with the work's "cruel and inappropriate" presentation for viewers of all ages.
After receiving similar complaints from local animal rights groups, the museum removed all the fish on display on Tuesday. Five out of the original 15 had already died.
"Art museums are designed to serve as open plazas as well as platforms for discussion," its official stated. "As we value the visitors' feedback and the animal rights groups' stance, we removed the goldfish after consulting with the artist."
The museum added that aside from the fish, the installation itself will remain in its place.
Yu expressed disappointment at the decision: "The slow deaths of the goldfish were meant to be a part of my piece. Now that the fish are gone, it lost its meaning as a work of art. While this may cause discomfort to general audiences, the artist thinks and expresses differently from members of the public," Yu said in a statement.
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