This artist labeled his work ‘Take the Money and Run’ and kind of did the same
Artists have their reasons for creating artworks. One adopts digital art to highlight social issues and politics, while another finds joy in recreating pageant gowns with pancit canton and other types of food as their medium. But recently, a conceptual artist used nothing, in fact, he delivered blank canvases to a museum to portray modern capitalism.
The Kunsten Museum of Modern Art in northern Denmark loaned Jens Haaning $84,000 (approximately P4.2 million) to produce pieces based on his earlier works. However, the artist took the money and submitted two empty frames titled Take the Money and Run.
The two previous works of Haaning, An Average Danish Annual Income (2010) and An Average Austrian Annual Income (2007), were supposed to be the inspiration for the Kunsten museum’s show. These pieces used real cash to reveal the average incomes of both countries.
Haaning’s submission wasn’t what the Kunsten museum expected, but the empty frames were still placed at their designated spot. It was part of the exhibition called Work It Out, which showcases people’s relationship with work.
Kunsten CEO Lasse Andersson said that the artist has until January 16, 2022 to deliver the artwork and give back the money. He said, ‘I believe he will give it back to us. He is a well-regarded artist. But if we don’t get it back, we will have to file charges against the artist.’
Meanwhile, Haaning explained that his recent pieces were a commentary on poor wages. While the Danish museum gave him money to “create” something, he doesn’t consider it as theft. He added, ‘It is a breach of contract, and breach of contract is part of the work… The work is that I have taken their money.’
Banner: Henning Bagger
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Source: we the pvblic
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