Blame Canada
Mexican performance artist Israel Mora has earned $1300 (Canadian) for wanking himself seven times and parading his man-gravy around town. The Banff Cultural Centre, where his semen is on display, defends the work as art. It hurts to think about how much money I’ve let slip through my fingers by not selling it to Canadians. Nobody is questioning his performance, but is it art?
Mexican performance artist Israel Mora, 33, has created a storm of controversy by making art out of his own semen at the internationally renowned Banff Centre.
Mora privately masturbated seven times during a seven-week media and visual arts residency, filling seven glass vials with his semen.
The vials were placed in a bar fridge which Mora wheeled through downtown Banff for an hour, joined by centre representatives and colleagues.
The fridge has been strung up between trees at the centre for the past six days. The display ends Friday.
Defended as art by the centre, Mora’s work — entitled Level 7 — was condemned by family and Christian groups Wednesday.
“This is not art. To suggest it is art is insane,” said Hermina Dykxhoorn, president of Alberta Women United for Families.
“It is only because he calls it art that the police haven’t arrested him.”
Dykxhoorn said Mora’s work “denigrated” The Banff Centre and reflects badly on society.
“It is a sad reflection on us as a culture that we allow this sort of thing. We never say enough is enough, we don’t want this kind of trash. It really debases us as a people,” she said.
“It is disturbing that we are willing to allow it and to fund it. It is a culture of ugliness, not a culture of beauty.”
Full Story from the Calgary Herald
