| Jens Galschiøt | |
|---|---|
Jens Galschiøt, 2009 |
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| Born | June 4, 1954 Frederikssund, Denmark |
| Nationality | Danish |
| Field | Sculpture |
| Works | Pillar of Shame series |
Jens Galschiøt, (born 4 June 1954 in Frederikssund, Denmark), is a Danish sculptor best known for the Pillar of Shame. Galschiøt moved to Odense in 1973, and in 1985 he opened a 2000 square metre combined foundry, studio, gallery and sculpture park.[1] In 1990, Galschiøt, Erik Mortensen and Jean Voigt, created the sculpture The Ringwearer's Jacket, which was commissioned by the Clothing Industry’s Union of Denmark for Queen Margaret II’s 50th birthday. Galschiøt contributed work to the Seville Expo '92.
In 1997, he created the Pillar of Shame in Hong Kong.[2] This became the start of a series of sculptures with the same name when he created a second in Mexico in 1999 and a third in Brazil in 2000.
In 2008, Galschiøt started The Color Orange campaign against human rights violations in China. He was denied entry to Hong Kong, where he had intended to paint the Pillar of Shame orange.[3]
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Jens Galschiøt has made several works for awards over the past years, and many are given annually. Some of them are mentioned here:
The Showbiz of 1993. A mask of bronze. The prize is given once a year by the Kolding Theatre to an outstanding character of the cultural life.
Wing. Sculpture for the Phoenix Architectural Competition, ‘Function and Form 1991’.
Hans Christian Andersen Prize.[4] Every year since 1996 Galschiot has made a copper casting of Andersen’s book The Adventures of my Life. A poem of Andersen and the name of the prize receiver are engraved. The sculpture is awarded to three persons who have contributed to the propagation of the storyteller’s works. The prize has been rewarded, among others, to German writer Günter Grass, the American film producer Steven Spielberg and in 2004 to Queen Margaret II.
The Fernando Prize. A sculpture prize for the Association of Social Politics. Since 1998 awarded once a year for an extraordinary contribution in the field of the association.
The Solar Catcher. The prize of the Danish Department of Energy. 1998-2001 awarded once a year to a municipality that had made a special effort in the research and implementation of renewable solar energy.
Jens Galschiøt is an active political artist. He creates most of his art projects to inspire debate and make people think. He typically places his works at the center of attention, with or without permission.
Pillar of Shame is a series of Galschiøt's sculptures. The first was erected in Hong Kong on 4 June 1997, ahead of the handover from British to Chinese rule on 1 July 1997, as a protest against China's crackdown of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. The Pillar of Shame is eight metres high and depicts twisted human bodies.[5] On 30 April 2008, the Pillar was painted orange[6] by Chinese democracy activists as part of the worldwide Color Orange campaign[7] launched by Galschiot to denounce China’s human rights violations. The event was held to coincide with the Olympic Games held in Beijing in August 2008.[8] Galschiot and his staff went to Hong Kong to take part in the event but were denied entrance by the Hong Kong immigration authorities.[9]
Galschiøt later erected versions of the Pillar of Shame in cities around the world to protest against infringements against humanity.
On 1 May 1999, a Pillar of Shame was set up on the Zócalo[10] in Mexico City. It stood for two days in front of the Parliament to protest the oppression of the region's indigenous people. The Pillar was later moved to a site at the entrance of the village of Acteal in Chiapas, where 45 unarmed indigenous people were killed by a paramilitary group on 22 December 1997. The re-erection of the sculpture was attended by hundreds of local people. On 22 December 2003, plates in the local language Tzotzil were donated to the inhabitants of Acteal. The original plates on the Pillar were in Spanish and English - languages that many indigenous people do not understand.
On 17 April 2000 a Pillar of Shame was erected in front of the Brazilian Parliament in Brasília to commemorate 19 landless peasants who were killed by the military police in the northern state of Pará on 17 April 1996.[11] It was mounted in co-operation with the MST (the landless peasants movement)[12] and opposition MPs. The sculpture was erected despite exacerbated resistance from the right wing and sections of the government. The Minister of Justice said that: "This sculpture will never be set up in front of the Brazilian Parliament." On 1 May the Pillar of Shame was permanently erected in Belém, capital of the northern state of Pará, where the Eldorado massacre had taken place in connection with a land occupation. Mayor Edmilson Rodrigues declared at the inauguration: "Despite of resistance from the elite, we stick to our promise of setting up the Pillar of Shame as a symbol opposing oppression and violence that is taking a toll of lives and depriving people of their rights".
The Cocoon is a sculpture group made for the Danish exhibition in the Art Pavilion at the World Exhibition, Seville Expo '92, Spain. The Cocoon consists of 22 steel shields, each measuring 1.5 metres x 4 meters.[13] The shields are penetrated by faces made of bronze. Galschiot contributed twenty bronze sculptures and a working silversmith’s workshop.
The exhibition was arranged in cooperation with The Mobile Gallery in Kolding that had received a 76 metre-long submarine as a gift from Gorbatjev.[14] French artist Jean Dewasne was responsible for the outside ornamentation, Galschiot for the inside fitting up of the submarine. The vision of establishing a cultural growth centre for young unemployed in the submarine was never realised.[15]
Galschiøt mounted one-ton heavy black concrete sculptures[16] in famous places in twenty cities across Europe.[17] The sculptures represent a pig in human clothes. The purpose was, in an untraditional way, to focus on the increasing violence, intolerance, racism and persecution of minorities, that Europe is witnessing these years. In November 1993 the twenty sculptures were erected within 55 hours without the knowledge of the authorities. The sculptures created a lot of commotion and debate in political circles, in the press[18] and in the public. In several places a permanent position has been found for the sculpture that was a gift to each city. More than 100 volunteers contributed to the happening.
On the occasion of the 10th anniversary, Jens Galschiot and his staff initiated a search to find out what has happened to each of the 20 sculptures. The fate of the Beasts varies quite a lot. In some cities the statue has been hidden away or even destroyed. It is striking that all 3 sculptures set up in France have disappeared. Some rumours suggest that the Beasts have transformed themselves into MPs. However, to the artist this explanation seems too far-fetched. In other cities the Beast has found a prominent site.[19] In Bonn it has even been incorporated in the German state’s art collection, and the statue also found a permanent place in Copenhagen, Milano,[20] Barcelona[4] and Innsbruck. The anniversary was celebrated during the European Social Forum 12–15 November 2003 in Paris where two Beasts participated in the big manifestation accompanied by Survival of the Fattest and 14 Hunger Boys.