The German parliament has voted to allow Hans Haacke’s controversial artwork to be installed in the Reichstag. “The work consists of a huge wooden container sunk into the floor to be filled with earth from the constituencies of the 660 members of the German parliament. Seeds from all over Germany are to be planted in the earth to produce a garden that will be left to grow wild. A neon inscription above the container will read “Der Bevölkerung” (To the people), a deliberate subversion of the words which were inscribed in bronze on the façade of the Reichstag in 1915: “Dem Deutschen Volke” (To the German people).” – The Art Newspaper
Tag: 05.05.00
RECKLESS ENDANGERMENT
Time Magazine art critic Robert Hughes goes on trial next week in Australia for dangerous driving. But he says he won’t get a fair trial unless he can present evidence about a $15,000 extortion attempt against him. Detectives charged two men on Wednesday night over the extortion attempt on Mr Hughes after a police sting operation involving a $15,000 drop-off at Perth airport. – The Age (Melbourne)