Is This Art? Or Animal Abuse? Animal And Dog Lovers Be Warned…
October 18th, 2007 | by Ginnie | (Visited 644,807 times)Related Animal Abuse Stories On The GinBlog:
- US Soldiers Throwing Puppies Off Cliffs and Shooting Dogs
- Shocking Images of Chinese and Philippine Horse Fighting – Equestrians and Animal Lovers Beware…
Recent Updates To This Story:
- From Raven of HelpingAnimals.com (4/24/08):
I wrote to PETA about this, and this is their response:
Many stories-sometimes conflicting-have been circulating about these events, and it has been difficult to verify the reports that we’ve received.
Because the initial exhibit with the dog took place in Nicaragua, which has no cruelty-to-animals laws, Vargas cannot be charged with a crime at this time.Our investigations department is aware that Vargas will participate in a show in Honduras in November. It has been reported that a Honduran group, the Honduras Association for the Protection of Animals and their
Environment (AHPRA), has secured the event organizers’ word that the event rules will prohibit animal abuse. PETA’s caseworkers are monitoring this situation and will take further action if we get word that Vargas plans to repeat the exhibit with the dog. People often
commit heinous acts in a bid to gain attention, so it is important to refrain from encouraging them by giving them the attention that they clearly crave. For more thoughts on this issue, please visit
http://blog.PETA.org/archives/2008/04/artist_starving.php.Exactly what happened at the exhibition in Nicaragua last year may be uncertain, but it is clear that millions of homeless animals are at risk of starvation, disease, violence and death in our own communities right now. To learn more about things you can do to make a difference for these animals, visit http://www.HelpingAnimals.com
- NBC10 Webisode Video on Vargas (Thanks Jim!)
This is one of those things you come across and just have to blink a couple times and ask, “is this real?”. In fact it is.
Guillermo Habacuc Vargas had 2 children catch this dog. He paid the kids for this. He then chained the dog and used the dog as “art”. He told everyone not to feed this dog. The dog died in the gallery. He calls himself an artist. I call him an animal abuser. In that event, (in which the dog died) he was chosen to represent his country in the “Bienal Centroamericana Honduras 2008″.
There is a petition to ban him from this event, which you can visit by clicking this link.
After reading that and digging around, I found this site with a little more information on the incident:
A Costa Rican artist found himself in hot water with the animal protection people in his home country after using a starving, sick street dog as part of an exposition in Managua, Nicaragua, in August. Guillermo “Habacuc” Vargas allegedly found the dog tied up on a street corner in a poor Nicaragua barrio and brought it to the showing. He tied the dog, according to furious animal lovers, in a corner of the salon where it died.
Here is another link about the incident as well, although it’s in another language and I’ve been unable to translate it thus far.
There will always be cultural boundaries and different definitions of what is defined as “art”, but I’ve always maintained that any sort of suffering is pointless. Especially when something like this was preventable.
If this post strikes you, here are a few links to do something about other dogs stuck in terrible conditions:
Save A Dog – Foster A Dog, Save A Life
Can We Help You Keep Your Pet – Abused Dogs
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October 18th, 2007 at 12:41 pm
You’d think some art lover would say – oh hell no – and do something.
Instead of: “hmm. Interesting. This artist is really saying something.”
October 18th, 2007 at 12:54 pm
The real statement this art is making is that NO ONE was brave enough to make their OWN art statement and feed the dog, a la taking a hammer to the urinal in France.
October 18th, 2007 at 12:57 pm
I’m not sure what the cultural bias may have to do with it (as in some countries dogs have less respect as animals), but I agree, and I think that’s what the artist was in fact trying to portray.. That we only care about things after they die. But the fact that he instructed people not to feed it, obviously meant someone showed interest, thereby sort of negating his whole premise..
Inexcusable in any fashion in my opinion.. there are better ways to document this. The picture of the starving, dying african child and the vulture from the National Geographic picture is one thing because there really was nothing to do, but this dog could have been fed, given water, and then released and probably would have done decently for itself on it’s own. Better than being chained down at least.
October 18th, 2007 at 1:42 pm
Well said.
October 18th, 2007 at 2:14 pm
This guy deserves to die.
Diversity. Had enough?
October 18th, 2007 at 2:17 pm
Neither did the artist so he’s just a hypocrite by your argument
October 18th, 2007 at 2:19 pm
This is from the page that Ginnie couldn’t translate. I just pasted the URL into babelfish so it isn’t the best translation. But it gives better of what the artist was trying to say. From what I understood the artist was saying that people just let these dogs die on the street so whats the difference if he let it die in a gallery.
Here the most of the “translated” text
“According to I knew the dog died on the following day by lack of food. During the inauguration I knew that the dog was persecuted in the evening between the houses of aluminum and cardboard of a district of Managua with santo name who Habacuc that could not need at the moment. 5 children of whom they helped in the capture received 10 bonds of córdobas by their collaboration. During the exhibition some people requested the freedom of the small dog, to which he artist rehuso. The name of the dog was (it was) Natividad, and I let myself to him die of at sight hunger of all, as if the death of a poor dog was a shameless mediatic show in which nobody does nothing else that to applaud or to watch disturbed.
Definitively we are what leimos: pure croquetas.
In the place that the dog was exposed single it has left a metal cable and a cord. The dog was extremely ill, renqueaba and it did not want to eat anyway, so in natural surroundings it had died anyway; but thus they are all the poor dogs: sooner or later they die or they die them.”
Hope it helps
October 18th, 2007 at 2:21 pm
I would have left and returned with a baseball bat and the best steak I could find. Guess who would get what.
Oh… and some chain cutters.
October 18th, 2007 at 2:22 pm
Excellent! Thank you Sarah!
Despite how sick the dog may have been, I’m sure it could have been saved or helped. He spent money paying kids to transfer it and arguably earned fame of some sort, so he’s still benefiting from something he could have helped.
October 18th, 2007 at 2:38 pm
People did not feed the dog, simply because they were asked not to… As sick as I think the artist is… the people who viewed the suffering dog are also to blame. Maybe the artist was trying to see if just a simple request would be enough to make people watch a living creature die. Its amazing how we had evolved… we have grown blind eyes.
October 18th, 2007 at 2:53 pm
I think that this is excellent art – I guess there are many street dogs dying all the time for hunger and sickness, but few people pay attention. By doing this outrageous art experiment, this artist has gotten people to talk and wake up.
October 18th, 2007 at 3:02 pm
If this is art then can I borrow one of his children, chain them to a railroad track and watch as the train cut their body in two? I will consider that ART if he considers this ART.
WHY DIDN’T ANYONE SET THE DOG FREE??? IF I WAS THERE, I WOULD HAVE CUT THE DOG LOSE AND LAY A BRICK ON THE ARTIST’S HEAD. …HMMMM BRICK AGAINST A HUMAN HEAD…THAT’S ART !
October 18th, 2007 at 3:15 pm
This conceptual project is a disgrace to a civilised society. Note I did not call it art which is to grant it a kind of moral imperative that this does not deserve. One need not hold under an audience’s nose death for us to understand it. We inherently do understand death. What some need to understand is that we ought, as a social animal, wish to help the pained and suffering be it our own species or that of another. We ought to eat only what we need to eat in terms of animal life and ought, in compensation, try to nurture the lives that we do not need for our survival as a kind of gift back to Nature for our carnivourous footprint. Watching..allowing a poor victim in a poor country starve or die whilst on display is callous and Nazi-like. Such an act in my country would result in a criminal trial for the so-called artist and the gallery. I speak as a civilised human who happens to be an an artist. Humanity calls for protecting the weak and the improverished and that includes dogs and cats. For shame to that display.
October 18th, 2007 at 3:16 pm
I can see your point on why you would think this is good art, but I do think its in poor taste to knowingly inflict pain on another creature to make such a point.
October 18th, 2007 at 3:28 pm
When will the story come out that this is fake? Were’s the dead dpg pics?
October 18th, 2007 at 3:30 pm
I do not believe that this was art. It could have been prevented. Pictures and video of these dogs could just as easily been a mode. People can understand ones inability to help all the dogs and view it as beneficial but taking one dog and making it suffer is disgusting. What if I were to take a human and rope them up to fight starvation? Im sorry there are many pictures and stories out there that make me know it is an issue without that kind of cruelty.
October 18th, 2007 at 3:32 pm
Well, you got helped get his name out there and his artwork generated a heated controversy in which people are debating the merits and boundaries of art, as well as how animals should be treated. I would say that this work of art has worked perfectly — how often does an artists message get through so quickly and generate so many comments from those who usually don’t spend much time thinking about art?
October 18th, 2007 at 3:33 pm
he found the dog on the street, tied to a pole. it would have died just the same. all he did was put it in a public place so you could see whats really going on. or maybe the dog is supposed to be a metaphor for what their doing to people all over the world. not just in his country. if you don’t like it don’t look at it, ignore it like 100,000,000 people do every day.
but i mean it’s life man. it’s cruel and inhumane. people are dying everywhere in the world as much as i’m sure dogs are dying, both for food and lack there of. so why should you be up in arms over one dogs life? would the animal lover do the same if he did this to himself? we watch it all the time on television. it’s not uncommon. nothings being done about it.
another dog dies.
October 18th, 2007 at 3:47 pm
You’ve nailed it. It reminds me of the milgram experiment.
October 18th, 2007 at 4:24 pm
It’s futile to guess whether the dog would have died or not without Vargas’s intervention–although it certainly did die from Varga’s actions. Perhaps he was so fed up with people treating dogs so poorly on the street that he decided to bring the death of this dog, and all dogs by extension, into the realm of “enlightened” society.
October 18th, 2007 at 4:31 pm
Hell no! It’s not art!
October 18th, 2007 at 4:34 pm
I’d like to take a pickax to his face as my masterpiece. After all, artists starve all the time.
October 18th, 2007 at 4:46 pm
Ironic that people so clearly see that this is not art, but have no problem viewing boiling live lobsters and throwing them on a plate with butter as an artisanal craft. The reality is our culture has a double standard about animals. We feign outrage over things like this and Michael Vick. Yet we sneer at vegans as self-righteous extremists for forcing us to confront our own hypocrisy. The death of this dog is a tragedy. But so are the deaths of the tens of billions of animals slaughtered every year because people choose to eat animals.
October 18th, 2007 at 4:51 pm
It’s hard to take your concern for the animal seriously when your only solution is to bring violence to another animal. Wouldn’t a more civilized solution be to simply feed the beast? Or if violence is the only language you speak… why not attack the man who had him chained in an alley to begin with? Better yet, why not axe the children who agreed to bring the beast; and for money no less? How about axing the face of every person who saw the creature and didn’t feed it?
October 18th, 2007 at 4:58 pm
i still wanna know why who chained a dog and let it die for art …
i dont think this has anything to do with art …
October 18th, 2007 at 5:05 pm
The artist, in this case, should probably be tortured and killed. I’m not a PETA member or anything (those people are a little too crazy), but this is wrong. I hope some crazy PETA person murders him. What an ass.
October 18th, 2007 at 5:19 pm
This guy better not ever show his face in NYC. I’ve written a little bit of “performance art” that involves him, and if he ever shows up, he’ll be seeing it up close and personal.
October 18th, 2007 at 5:21 pm
what is paAs
October 18th, 2007 at 5:29 pm
Why dont they tie up that sob and let him starve…..i’d like to see that art…what a piece of worthless sh*t…..
October 18th, 2007 at 5:45 pm
this guy’s going to hell.
October 18th, 2007 at 5:53 pm
Fucking piece of shit artist should be tied up in my basement and I’ll charge admission for people to come see my “art”.
October 18th, 2007 at 6:03 pm
Are you for real? We allow poor victims in poor countries to die each and every goddamned day. Just because they aren’t on “display” doesn’t mean they aren’t dying. The real disgrace comes from all the people on this planet who could help those who suffer on a daily basis, but don’t. Including myself. I think that’s part of what this artists was trying to express.
October 18th, 2007 at 6:08 pm
And today a child in Africa died of starvation because you have done nothing to help.
October 18th, 2007 at 6:11 pm
inflict pain? I think not. He put on display the pain and suffering which were already present. If only the measuring stick for behavior was determined by how much suffering it caused others on this planet…
October 18th, 2007 at 6:23 pm
I will refer to Kierkegaard’s stand on self determination. The artist is searching for his self and the dog is simply a component of the journey. The act was cruel and inhuman but the process was to expose the inner conflict of the artist and his own self perception of being “tragic.” I’m sure he would argue endlessly over his right to “find himself” irregardless of the dog’s destiny. One final point: as members of the human race we have collectively destroyed countless species of animals, including humans, so the get all foamy about the dog is really over the top. Allow this artist to find the path to his self awareness.
October 18th, 2007 at 6:35 pm
How could anyone do that? This person has no humanity. How can anyone let an animal suffer in starvation and then to call the work “art”?
I have been told once that “Art” is suppose to touch or inspire a feeling in the observer. That being said, the only feeling this observer has is disgust.
Personally, I would like to tie this artist to a pole and let him starve, but of course, I wouldn’t do that to a dog.
Can not the world understand? What will be his next vision of art? Perhaps some child on the street (who might or might not die) will be his next plan. When will this stop?
How can any organization say this was a great thing and let the sicko represent his country in a art expo?
John Bishop, let me have a swing of your pickax!
October 18th, 2007 at 6:43 pm
I would not feed the dog, it would only prolong its suffering. I would rather have “accidently” cut its rope…but then I know it would be too weak to run off on its own and me running off with someones “property” in honduras would be bad news.
Sickening.
October 18th, 2007 at 6:48 pm
[...] is. Art is about expression. Art is about allowing people to interpret your work in their own way. Art is not tying a dog to a pole and leaving it to die. That’s just fucking disgusting. As a dog lover myself, and a human being in general, I [...]
October 18th, 2007 at 6:57 pm
How could anyone with a concience see this dog dying in the gallery or in the street and not do something to try and help the poor animal?
October 18th, 2007 at 6:58 pm
Consider for a moment. He did have a humanitarian point to make though about the poor and ignored of Honduras, and many “third-world” places, suffering and dying everyday. After the dog died, he removed it and just left the rope behind… which was promptly ignored by the visitors to the exhibition.
If I were there, would I have helped the dog? I like to think I would. But I wasn’t. Time to subjectively step back and consider it from logical angles.
Just a few links about the things that could have been going through the artist’s mind when he came up with the concept of the ‘art’ he exhibited.
Dying for Clean Water In Honduras
Painkillers in short supply in poor countries
Gangs in Honduras
There is more, but I’m not an exhibitor. I don’t agree with the methods or the outcome. The man should be punished with whatever animal cruelty laws are available. Given a chance to go to trial. That said, I do understand a purpose.
October 18th, 2007 at 7:00 pm
Someone please kill this guy.
Cruelty to animals is an act of cowardice – you are harming something which can’t defend itself.
October 18th, 2007 at 7:15 pm
This is seriously disgusting. no human.. regardless of where they are from should cause an animal to suffer for no reason. This isn’t anything to do with culture. It is globally understood that suffering is wrong.. otherwise cultures would kill themselves off.
October 18th, 2007 at 7:15 pm
Art is supposed to be thought provoking and stir conversation. Yes it was cruel but how many time do we shush an animal like a stray dog or cat without so much of a consideration of what may happen to it. People barely keep their door closed for household pets. It’s art as disturbing as it maybe and maybe next time I see a dog starving I may just throw a double cheese burger his way. He got what he wanted, attention and people to talk. AS for the people who were cowards and not helping the dog i blame them for the ultimate death of the animal, not the artist.
It’s worse to stand by and do nothing rather than actually doing it..
October 18th, 2007 at 7:22 pm
Why would any sane human being do this to another creature?
What’s really depressing and making me angry is the picture showing all those people mingling with each other while the poor dog is lying starving.
Simple wtf is this world coming too.
That man should be punished for killing a defenceless animal. Maybe we should chain him and not feed him for the sake of “art”.
What society would allow this to happen?
October 18th, 2007 at 7:25 pm
The artist ought to be chained up too for this act of animal abuse.
October 18th, 2007 at 7:44 pm
what the fuck is wrong with these fucking people ?????
October 18th, 2007 at 7:46 pm
This lack of empathy and compassion for man’s best friend, such a common story…
Millions of captive animals are constantly suffering horribly slow and painful deaths at the hands of psychopaths, while society prefers to look the other way.
Are there are no boundaries to human cruelty?
http://pacthailand.org
October 18th, 2007 at 7:53 pm
Here is some art for you. Why don’t we tie this “artist” up in a corner and not feed him. You know, “art”!
October 18th, 2007 at 7:53 pm
This is murder.
Life is life – confining and denying an animal (human or other) what it needs to sustain its life is murder.
Those responsible for this should be tried and be held accountable for their actions.
October 18th, 2007 at 8:22 pm
But having fat dogs in the U.S. (so fat that they need to go on diets) is OK? The U.S. is warped.
October 18th, 2007 at 8:23 pm
Do we really need another Artist?…hell no….Chain him up!
October 18th, 2007 at 8:26 pm
They ought to chain that asshole up in the gallery and let him starve.
October 18th, 2007 at 8:35 pm
If I saw it and he said I couldn’t feed it then sorry artist boy but after punching your lights out I would have put the poor dog down!
-Sully
October 18th, 2007 at 8:43 pm
I think he should be put to death by the same way he treated the dog. And then we can call it art!
October 18th, 2007 at 8:59 pm
If it was tied to a pole, it was obviously going to be collected by it’s owner sometime. If he believed it was going to die, then simply let it go, or feed it and give it to someone that would look after it. What if nosaj had been treated the same. I bet you’d hear him/her squeal from the other side of the world. Yes dogs die every day. That’s no reason to be cruel you loser.
October 18th, 2007 at 9:02 pm
Wake up to what? To the fact that there are losers like him and you in the world?
October 18th, 2007 at 9:02 pm
This guy is awesome.
October 18th, 2007 at 9:37 pm
What the hell did the dog ever do to “senior artiste” to deserve such a fate?
If ever I receive a choice between killing this monster or saving the dog, I’d kill this ****** 1000 times over – slowly -
Then again, I guess there’s some market for twisted things like this. After all, just take a look on the net at how many sites there are dealing in morbid pics / vids involving death, mutilation etc. These sites are prospering. Why I wonder, because no one’s visiting? Didn’t think so.
In fact, I’m pretty sure some twisted monkey is reading this right now. If you’re into this type of shit, do us all a favor and take your perversions out on yourself. In fact, just kill yourself right now.
October 18th, 2007 at 9:39 pm
What is the definition, in your culture, of a humane death? Starving in the street? Dying of old age and dementia alone in a nursing home? Maybe you think abortion is humane or capital punishment? Does it matter that it is a dog? What if it were a mouse? Maybe a snake? What if it were a serial killer? A stranger on the street? Could you, through inaction, allow one of them to die? In some cultures they worship death, others eat dogs as part of a regular meal? Do the hindu protest the wests method of cattle slaughter? Before you try and place yourself upon the moral high ground, be sure you are on the mountain rather than a foothill with the mountain at your back.
October 18th, 2007 at 9:41 pm
This is a lousy thing to do to an animal, but I have the chilling feeling that all the people who claim that they would kill the artist with a brick and set the dog free would not have done so when instructed not to by museum security. It’s scary what we’ll do when told to by authorities. There’s the famous Milgram experiment where people were willing to shock someone with stronger and stronger current if instructed to do so by an authority, and of course the holocaust, where an entire nation quietly sat by while the authorities killed millions. If ANYTHING positive comes out of this horrible act, maybe it will make us think twice about authority and how little we are often willing to question it.
October 18th, 2007 at 9:42 pm
Wish I was there to hear that, I’d knock his teeth in the back of his throat and tell everyone not to call for help cuz its Art!
October 18th, 2007 at 9:45 pm
It’s not not art…
October 18th, 2007 at 9:46 pm
While this artist has inflicted pain upon this wonderful creature, the audience inflicted pain even more. See the last picture, everybody’s back is turned and wrapped up in their own lives rather than noticing the starving dog in the corner. I would have bought that dog food being an artist myself.
October 18th, 2007 at 9:48 pm
Cruelty to animals has been shown by psychologists to be a leading indicator of sociopathic behavior — the same behavior that later leads to cruelty (and killing) of other humans. If applying the false label of “art” to this act legitimizes it, would “art” killing of humans be next?
This is the worst example of Orwellian double-speak. Words are powerful and by abusing their meaning evil people can easily manipulate those with weak characters.
Torture and killing for pleasure are always wrong. Simple really. Doesn’t matter what sort of sophistry is used to justify it.
October 18th, 2007 at 9:57 pm
Obviously, they should do the same thing to the ‘artist’ eh?
October 18th, 2007 at 9:58 pm
You are a huge .. terribly huge … dumbass. Wow.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:04 pm
If the artist chained himself up and died, I might consider that art… stupid, but art. He would have had the choice to leave.
Taking a helpless animal and starving it is NOT art.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:08 pm
So.. I will beat you to almost near death and tie you up somewhere. Hopefully some amazing artist will find you and do the same for his art piece. Then all of the people at the opening can drink wine while you are dying there and they can sniff each others intellectual farts while pretending to be enlightened. I hate you.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:12 pm
If he wanted to make a statement about how the deaths of these dogs are overlooked like this, then why not take pictures instead? It seems he could have used that money he paid the children to give the dog something to eat. I understand that animals on the brink of death often don’t eat and try to seclude themselves…but to display it in a way far more tangible…and to even instruct people to not even TRY and help it is just barabric, and not art in any way. The factual portrayal of suffering is one thing….the forcing of it is a very different thing indeed.
On that same note though, while I would have tried to help the dog, regardless of the artist’s request, I wouldn’t have used violence against the artist or bystanders to vindicate or further my efforts. No matter how cruel we may be, Humans are animals as well…and deserve just as much compassion and love as any other creature on this planet.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:14 pm
Tie him up like the dog till he starves to death!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He is a physco !!!!!!!!!
HANG HIM TO DEATH
October 18th, 2007 at 10:14 pm
i hope seeing that creature suffer was worth the horrid pictures the artist took. is he insane? i would love for him to be tied up in front of hundreds of onlookers without food, even it was only for one full day, this would make a point, and prove one to himself i think.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:15 pm
This makes me sick to my stomach. I know I am not the first to say so, and I am sure I will not be the last, but being cruel to any of God’s creation in the name of anything is horrifying. It is indeed sad and disturbing that dogs die all day from lack of attention, and it is true that by and large no one pays attention to the attrocities around them until someone makes some noise about it. There was a little too much foreign language involved for me to take a stab at what the artist was “going for”, but torturing a living being is not a statement worth making, it is squalid.
Thank you for calling attention to this atrocity.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:16 pm
What would accomplish more? Showing the suffering of the dog or just helping it to live? Art should require suffering from the artist, no one else. This “artist” should be beaten to death on the street.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:16 pm
lol I agree with you.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:18 pm
lol, I agree with you.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:20 pm
As an artist, I consider this completely sickening. And as a dog lover and defender, I feel even euthanasia is a rather cruel feat of human nature. Rather than put the extra effort forth to save a lowly creature (as general humans would put it), birthed by our societies, our species, we would rather exterminate them. I mean, would you consider putting your child to sleep just because he or she has come down with an incurable ailment, or perhaps being curable, just being extremely costly? I understand that those of incurable disease/illness, or those that are dying of old age make their way into hospices, but why not our beloved pets? I was stricken with the harsh decision of either putting my dog to sleep, or coughing up $1600 when she was hit by a truck and the owner did not offer to pay medical expenses. Instead, I made due with what money I had and took the extra effort to save her. I could only afford one cast, but crated her for several months and watched her closely until her injuries healed. She is living and in perfect shape. Now I understand that in nature, wild animals live and die by the laws of darwinism and evolution, but when humans interact with a species, they forever change their niche. The animal can possibly revert back and be considered feral, but they will never be what is considered truly wild. Humans need to show more respect towards our fellow canines and protect what beautiful domesticated animals we have created.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:23 pm
I just wonder when the same art lovers will be cheering on the [insert persecuted people] being thrown to the lions in the modern day coliseum.
If people find that acceptable, will we soon see a return of Roman type spectacles?
October 18th, 2007 at 10:27 pm
If he can do this to a dog i wonder how he treats people
October 18th, 2007 at 10:32 pm
You are right. The dog would probably have died anyway.
And we see this on TV all the time.
And One Hundred Million people ignore it everyday.
But WTF makes you think that the preexisting condition of something gives a blanket permission for people to further perpetuate that situation.
Who in their right mind thinks a sordid societal condition cedes them the right to point it out by engaging in the very activity they are professing to condemn.
This is to me the equivalent of a theif stealing from another theif to demonstrate how terrible stealing is.
Or a child rapist claiming that he is an artist by publishing his foul acts to point out the horrors of how many children are raped.
It is disgusting.
If you want to get people attention and mobilize them to take action agains an ill of society, I salute you. But if you tell me the only way that you can do so is in this manner, then I have lost all respect for you and MUST condemn your actions.
The fact that you support this confused sociopath concerns me. You obviously… I am going to stop now. You should really think before you post a comment like this.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:35 pm
life and death is never art there is nothing beautiful in death. If you’ve ever witnessed it you would know that. The only acceptable statement to be made in death is ones own martyrdom. Taking the life of another being puts you not on the level of Picasso or Warhol, rather that of Joseph Mengela. I say this as someone who has witnessed death to many times to count. You want to comment on the futility of life or mans apathy go to Gary Indiana or Detroit Michigan (my home town and the city I work in) and take pictures of the nursing homes there the way the greatest generation are treated like second class animals.
Would it be art if you took a mother after recently given birth, displaying the mother being Gang Raped with in an inch of her life and then having her breasts chopped off with a machete and keeping her on display until the child dies. If that can be art than it’s perfectly acceptable to say that the dog dieing was art. However if you feel that you could watch my scenario call it art and sleep like a baby that night then you need to realize that performance art has a place and sometimes photos will have to suffice…
October 18th, 2007 at 10:36 pm
I think this was a great concept. Sure, the dogs death was a bit cruel, but there’s a lot of poetic justice behind this.
open your minds people
October 18th, 2007 at 10:37 pm
I like how in picture from the opening all the arties are just standing around with their drinks.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:37 pm
The point of the artwork was to BREAK THE RULES and feed the dog, to “LET THE HUMAN SPIRIT WIN” and all that crap.
What F*CKING DOUCHEBAGS were going to that exhibition????? I’m ashamed of being a human being right now.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:39 pm
obviously none of you have ever been to a large south american city, where packs of stray dogs are no more «respected» than pigeons up here in the north. they’re at best a nuisance, spreading disease and parasites. they avoid people, all the while living off garbage. these are not your cute, fluffy, spayed, neutered and vaccinated members of the family. they do not have names. they are not domesticated. you do not touch these animals. they are just a notch above the garbage they live in. a very small notch.
from what I understand the dog died one day after being put into the gallery. just look at the pictures. mangy, scraggly, skinny and apparently a day away from the end of its painful existence. walking with a limp, refusing to eat. yes, the poor dog did not want to eat. it probably knew at this stage that it didn’t have a lot of time left. and it sure didn’t die as a result of being in that gallery. the dog was very sick and would have died in the street anyways.
the link to the spanish article is very enlightening – for all you spanish readers out there – and the huge quantity of comments – roughly half positive, half negative – clearly demonstrate that there are many points of view from which to see this statement.
I don’t think you can impose your personal emotional point of view on a situation of a vastly different cultural context. I mean, a pick axe to his face? murder? REALLY? do you have that reaction when you see a dead pigeon lying in the street? do you feel like murdering the children of whoever drove over the poor poor pigeon? me neither. because it’s just a dirty pigeon, not anything really important.
and in most south american cities, stray dogs are nothing more than a dirty nuisance.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:49 pm
I agree- where is the conscious of this artist. Where is the conscious of the viewer!
Where is compassion for all sentient beings! This abuser made another living being suffer and be tortured in the name of art. All animals feel pain. A spectacle? Really disgusting in this 21st century can we humans ever get and grow beyond the Inquisition.
What is next Gitmo as a performance piece.
This should never happen again. Art is not torture.
October 18th, 2007 at 10:53 pm
Here is the translation I did on digg:
From what I know, the dog died the following day from lack of food. During the opening ceremony I found out that a dog was chased in the evening, just between the houses of aluminum and cardboard of a ghetto of Managua named Saint of Habacuc, I’m not entirely sure at what time. Five kids that helped capture it received 10 cordobas for their help. During the exhibition some people asked the dog be freed, the artist declined.
The name of the dog was Natividad (Nativity), and it was left to die in-front of everyone, as if the death of a poor dog was a shameless media show in which no one could do much but clap or watch nervously.
We definitely are what we read: only biscuits. (referring to the picture that reads, ‘we are what we read: biscuits’).
In the place were the dog was exposed, only a metal cable and leash are left. The dog was incredibly sick, cried and didn’t want to eat anyway, so it’s natural environment would have been death anyway; although that’s how all dogs are: sooner or later they die or they are died (sic).
October 18th, 2007 at 10:56 pm
I agree:
Art is not torture! If it is will Gitmo be a performance. This artist is an abuser and a possible serial killer. That is in their MA the torture and killing of animals. Then humans.
Where is the conscious of this artist and where is the conscious of the viewers?????
How did we let another living being suffer and die in the name of spectacle.
Lets take a quantum leap out of the Inquisition paradigm. Please!
October 18th, 2007 at 11:00 pm
He made a statement. think beyond the fact the dog is now dead and how it died and realize how the true message of his art. He brought out the disgusting reality that people will do what they’re told. they do as they’re told and don’t ask questions.
the fact that nobody broke the chain, no body fed the dog or made effort to remove the artist shows the ugly side of people, especially the art-loving visitors!
Brilliant yet violent and disturbing at the same time.
October 18th, 2007 at 11:03 pm
There is no cultural equivocation here – this is outright cruelty. I’d like to tie up this “artist” and make him part of his exhibit.
I’ve translated the linked page (not through the fish, I speak Spanish). It seems the writer presents the other side of the story.
“According to my own inquiry, I discovered the dog died on the following day due to malnutrition. During the event, I was told the dog was chased down in the shanty towns made of aluminum and cardboard in a district of Managa (Nicaragua) by someone named Habukkuk, but I could not confirm. five children assisted in the capture, and were paid 10 cordobas for their assistance. During the exhibition, several viewers pleaded for the release of the dog, but the artist rebuked them. The dog, named Nativity, was allowed to die in plain view of everyone, as if the dog’s death were some shameless exhibition in which viewers should do nothing but applaud or watch however disturbed they may be.
Definitely, we are we read: nonsense.
The dog was placed on display tied by a metal cable and a cord. The dog was already extremely sick, refused any contact and it did not want to eat, hence it would have died anyway; thus the dog is like many poor dogs: sooner or later they die or are killed.
October 18th, 2007 at 11:08 pm
Yes I find this horrifying. It shouldn’t happen.
What worries me is that people get upset over this but think abortion is OK. Little unborn babies get chopped up and discarded.
How many people replied to this who think starving a dog to death is wrong but chopping up the unborn is OK?
Neither should happen.
October 18th, 2007 at 11:08 pm
It’s art. It’s sick art, I’ll agree, but it makes a statement. The viewers listened to the artist rather than feeding the dog. It seems that we, as a race, are more willing to let a reprehensible thing happen right in front of us if we’re told to by a percieved authority figure.
I agree with the previous poster that someone should have fed it as a counter point.
As was the case when Davis Hammons urinated on a piece by Richard Serra.
October 18th, 2007 at 11:09 pm
[...] read more | digg story [...]
October 18th, 2007 at 11:26 pm
I think this is just sick!! ART are you kidding me!!?!? Starving a helpless animal to death is not art?!?! Would it be art it we were to chain a human up and starve them to death and then put them on display!!?!? Animals are helpless creatures! This guy should be locked up for a veeerrrryyyy loooong time!
October 18th, 2007 at 11:31 pm
I won’t try to defend this guy, but all the aforementioned comments about how he should “die” and “be shot” are embarrassing and equally offensive. People who truly value life (be it a dog’s life or a human life) don’t respond like this. Please grow up or get off the internet.
Also, the artist wrote “The importance to me is the hypocrisy of the people where an animal is the focus of attention where people come to see art but not when it’s in the street starving to death.”
So… where exactly is the outrage for all the dogs dying in the streets? Hell, where’s the outrage over the human beings dying in the streets? And what is anyone doing about it? Signing an online petition doesn’t count.
You see, most of the aforementioned comments nicely support the artist’s statement. As predicted, and as is often the case, the issue-at-hand is the focus only after it’s reached a point of no return, but not when there’s still time to do something about it.
Hypocrisy, indeed.
(And yes, it’s a shame a dog had to die for the artist to make this point. I’m sure there must have been other, less permanent ways to convey the same message).
October 18th, 2007 at 11:33 pm
Art or not….(beanie)like….who does that?(beanie)
October 18th, 2007 at 11:34 pm
This is brilliant art – street dogs die all the time, this one is causing controversy
October 18th, 2007 at 11:43 pm
What the hell does diversity have to do with it?
Jackass.
October 18th, 2007 at 11:45 pm
I just think it’s sick !! if he is an artist ? is this the best he can come up whit ? pretty lame sick ****** ! hope i’ll never catch you in person !
October 18th, 2007 at 11:48 pm
If this is so obscene, why did no one:
1. Force the food and water issue, instead of accepting the artist’s instruction?
2. Do nothing for the animal while it was on the street and only when it was brought into the gallery?
The artist’s argument to me seems to be a matter of, we only see things when we want to see things, and only act when it has been thrust in our face and violates our moral senses. If you prosecute him, do you prosecute everyone who walked by and did nothing? Do you prosecute everyone who walked by, attempted, but stopped on his word? Do you prosecute the people who passed it on the street?
Why are we getting upset about this dog when there are others in our own neighborhoods who we don’t even try to assist?
It’s an act that is a great conversation piece and moral ambiguity goes a long way in accepting what happened, but ultimately the question is why are we blaming instead of acting.
October 18th, 2007 at 11:52 pm
BS!!!….Hope you get abducted by another being and make you suffer some kind of an Art form that produces never ending & unimaginable amount of PAIN…. the kind that will never kill you…just suffer again and again and again and again Mofo!!! Death is too luxurious for your kind.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:05 am
could someone please post the address of the gallery that let this happen….or the place….and possibly his home address? Thank you.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:07 am
How starving a dog in a corner of an art gallery can ever be justified as art is beyond belief. What is utterly pervers is that people attending the exhibition allowed this to happen. How incredible morbid, demoralising and shameful. What sort of insight can be gained from such cruelty.
I believe that charges should be laid against the artist for cruelty to animals. What’s more he should never be allowed to exhibit in any major exhibitions/biennaials the world over. The whole thing reeks of a perverse publicity stunt. Abhorent.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:12 am
I think more poetic justice to match this artists muse is in order. I say we let street dogs eat him alive. This person needs to be punished and taught that using creatures for your own gain to the end result of death is illegal under any law.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:17 am
Um…am I going to be the only person to point out that the only thing hurt here was a dog? Who cares?
October 19th, 2007 at 12:18 am
I agree. I think it would make a stronger statement to tie him up and starve him to death. If I had money, I would hire people to do such deeds.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:22 am
He is a monster, not an artist. He should be locked up for this.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:35 am
Maybe the artist was trying to convey the fact that this sort of thing (starvation) is happening to human beings all the time, and it points out hypocrisy that activist groups will defend a dog rather than other humans first. I’m not really for any of these causes, however. Then again I don’t live in a really poor country, either.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:36 am
What if the artist replace the dog to become the object… That’s what I call art…
October 19th, 2007 at 12:37 am
Other artists in the past that started like that ended up serial killers.
I would jail and give the artist psych exams and fine everyone involved.
Just to be nasty send the health department in and shut them all down for awhile too.
I’m sick of the BS that continues in the art world.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:37 am
I can’t believe how anyone could think this is art. What if we chain the guy and not feed him and call it… “Pwn’d in the face… the art that loves to hurt”.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:42 am
To me the real point of this is that so many folks are getting worked up about a dog that died from lack of food, while in the same city there are many human children suffering and dying of starvation which none of you so-caring people give a damn about.
Would you really rather see people give their charitable food contribution to a starving dog than to a starving child, or a starving sick old man? Who is really the monster here: those who kill dogs, or those who care more about dogs than about people?
October 19th, 2007 at 12:51 am
I think who ever did this should be fucin shot.. I think this is cruilty to the animal.. and shouldn’t be tolerated. I want help the poor thing.. but no it died isn’t there a thing called preservation a life if not human but dog.
I am soo mad! Beyond beliefe and i hope the bastard dies.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:54 am
that’s a very good point. it also further emphasizes the cultural barriers in this (actually i don’t know for sure. i’m assuming the spectators were of the same country). and yet here we (americans or english, judging from everyone’s names) are, voicing opinions against it… but this argument isn’t very strong, considering i’m only making assumptions. whatever.
October 19th, 2007 at 1:17 am
Pls try to post a picture of the artist, i want to see his face so that if i ever see him around someday, to make sure he knows what is meant by suffering…
I’d love to OFF this guy NOW!!!
October 19th, 2007 at 1:19 am
Tie this fucker up, lets see how he dehydrates. Then put him in a gallery.
Thats ART…
This guy is a sick freak.
October 19th, 2007 at 1:23 am
hmm.
At first I thought how sickening and cruel. But then reading some comments I can see what the artist may have been trying to get at.
All he did was tie the dog up, but it’s true people walked past and simply went “hmm… interesting”.
It reminds me of the Stanford Prison Experiment and Stanley Milgram’s Obedience Experiment (top 20 weirdest experiments).
It may outrage you but the fact is most human beings are very easy to manipulate and once given orders it’s surprising how easily they will carry them out even knowing they are causing suffering by doing it.
October 19th, 2007 at 1:24 am
[...] one of the most disturbing things I have come across recently. You can view the rest of the article here. Firstly, the fact that this sicko even managed to convince the gallery to go ahead with this [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 1:26 am
[...] Degenerate piece of shit named Guillermo Habacuc Vargas chained a dog in an art gallery, and let it die. [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 1:43 am
This is really sick. This guy does not deserve to live, and the same goes for the people who listened to him and did not feed the poor animal. I say tie this guy up and let him almost die from starvation, what a bastard.
October 19th, 2007 at 1:44 am
It would have been an art to save this dog publicly.
October 19th, 2007 at 1:46 am
KILL THAT MOTHERFUCKER!!!
Dogs are sweet, and you should treat everyone on the same way as you would be treated, this guy needs to get shot by someone. i really hate those type of people, peace of crap as they are.
Everyone who’s agree with me sign that damm statement and make that artist vanish from the cultural world!!!!!
October 19th, 2007 at 1:47 am
Instead of taking the dog to the gallery to let people see the dog die, he’d better taken it to the gallery and given it water, food and medical care, so that people would see the dog recover!
Now THAT would have been art!, the art of loving and caring for people and animals, without asking anything in return…
I cannot believe that people just stood there, doing nothing about it…
October 19th, 2007 at 1:48 am
Excellent comment from digg.com:
i’d like to show him some art of my own.
October 19th, 2007 at 1:54 am
Disgusting :/
And people commenting that it was going to die anyway, any chance that it would be found and cared for or survive on its own was taken away from it.
Aswell as many others im sure, id love to chain this poor excuse of a person in a corner and let people watch him suffer.
October 19th, 2007 at 1:58 am
Since when is animal abuse an artform? He didn’t have the guts to sit there himself?
October 19th, 2007 at 1:58 am
Give me 2 minutes in a room with this “artist”
October 19th, 2007 at 2:00 am
I’d like to chain the artist up and let him sit there until he dies of starvation.
Now thats art for you.
October 19th, 2007 at 2:06 am
this guy is sick and so are the people who saw this as art and let the poor dog die like that.
October 19th, 2007 at 2:12 am
My take on this is that this is a rare thing to happen to a dog – normally it is people who are tied up and/or straved, which is a daily occurrence in our world that people only take notice of when it (rarely) steps into their own lives and circumstances. I wouldn’t call this art, but it’s a very good comment on human nature. The artist becomes the tyrant and the onlookers become the masses who simply watch as death is dealt out. Those that think they could make a difference are deflected by the slightest authority.
The dog was found in an area of habitation where people barely survive. Sadly, people seem to say they would take a brick to the artist, where they should really take a brick to the authorities, but they won’t – any ‘animal lovers’ who advocated violence in their comments here would actually do nothing if faced with the real thing – pure bluster. I find it sad to see this poor dog, but even sadder to see people saying such strident thngs about it when they couldn’t give a monkeys about the injustices in society.
October 19th, 2007 at 2:13 am
You sick fuck!
October 19th, 2007 at 2:19 am
I agree,
Many dogs like that one have a very poor life, and no one on the street would have fed it just for the cause. Only now we see pictures of the animal, we get affected and feel bad. But aren’t able to feel for alle the unknow animals that do not have to eat. Think about that, would you travel there and feed all the street dogs so they will live?
This is a perfect example of the wrong way people think these days. People need a broader view on life instead of judging these unique expirements. Want to make a change? Make it!
October 19th, 2007 at 2:21 am
What’s incredible is that no one intervened. It’s the indifference and blindness of the public that’s really questioned here.
It’s also incredible how the power of words can control the actions and behaviour of people. “He told everyone not to feed this dog” and everyone obeyed, consumed and conformed. It’s sickening.
October 19th, 2007 at 2:22 am
Oh fuck off Ginnie, trying to “explain” this cockcucking “artist”. He should be shot.
October 19th, 2007 at 2:24 am
What a sick sick guy..
Chain him and let him starve .. for me it would be the summum of art..
I have no words to describe how sick I think this guy is. He should be thrown in jail.
October 19th, 2007 at 2:39 am
“so why should you be up in arms over one dogs life?”
I understand dogs die everyday (getting ran over by cars, starvation, etc) – BUT this is different…the “artist” decided killing a dog is “art”.
October 19th, 2007 at 2:41 am
I have a proposal for a new art project:
Find a cocaine sniffing bastard from Honduras who calls himself artist, Tie him up, beat him almost to death, deny him medical help and then invite a dozen of hungry street dogs for dinner.
October 19th, 2007 at 2:42 am
Sorry, but that is a load of golden crapola. Art is supposed to document suffering, not cause it. This is killing, and killing is not art.
This is no different to a husband who beats his wife and says he still loves her. You do not prove an abuse by committing it!
October 19th, 2007 at 2:42 am
bullshit
October 19th, 2007 at 2:43 am
Art….??? FUCK OFF!!
DIE MOTHER FUCKER, DIE!!!
October 19th, 2007 at 2:48 am
This is animal abuse.
October 19th, 2007 at 2:55 am
While you can draw interesting social conclusions from this, the fact of the matter is that the artist is guilty of animal cruelty and should be punished for it accordingly.
October 19th, 2007 at 2:57 am
Yeah, I guess GWB should bomb whatever country the guy is in. Spread the democracy!
October 19th, 2007 at 2:58 am
Yeah, GWB should go ahead and bomb Honduras. Spread the democracy!
October 19th, 2007 at 3:00 am
If this guy is comming to Holland he is a deadman ! I’ll even promise him he is dead before he hits the groud !
October 19th, 2007 at 3:03 am
Fuck that fake artist!
October 19th, 2007 at 3:03 am
There was this similiar case in Finland in 1988 when this so-called-artist killed a cat and masturbated afterward in his video-installation.. maybe I should do a video-installation of killing Teemu Mäki and masturbating afterwards?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teemu_Mäki
October 19th, 2007 at 3:03 am
FUCK HIM!!!!
October 19th, 2007 at 3:03 am
I cannot believe this! How is this art. You kill a beatifull dog.
The only thing I’m wishing for is that this so called artist will die slowly.
Inexcusable!
Perhaps we should find this man and chain the awfull man! If you have two kids you must know love. If you know love how on earth can you do this as a project. You have no heart you sick bastard!
I hope you die! Then your kids feel the loss of a dad…many kids lose their fathers at war…nice other project…???
Sick twat!
October 19th, 2007 at 3:04 am
[...] really have any sensible polite comments on this … Incoming Links (via Technorati):Nothing [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 3:07 am
Hello you fuck, Your a lucky man not living in the Netherlands otherwise i will give you the same treatment as the dog.
October 19th, 2007 at 3:10 am
DIE Guillermo Habacuc Vargas !!! Die motherfucker !!!
October 19th, 2007 at 3:11 am
What a joke. That isnt art, its a dog on a chain. There arent many real artists anymore, just people who cant draw, paint or sculpt anything decent, so they chain a dog up and rely on all the arty morons out there to discuss how brilliant it is.
Id like to chain him up and leave him to die, that wouldnt be art either, but it would be satisfying.
October 19th, 2007 at 3:12 am
But dogs die on the streets every day anyways, he just moved one of them to an art gallery.
October 19th, 2007 at 3:14 am
Guillermo Habacuc Vargas should be roped up to fight starvation and die in his last “masterpiece”.
VanderSanden
The Netherlands
October 19th, 2007 at 3:17 am
Thats a lame argument. dogs die, so who cares if another one does? The dog wouldnt have died, they can live on very little, all it probarbly needed was a little water. This is just an artist who relies on idiots to perceive his work as art. Arty types are mostly fools. They conjure up discussions that they think sound inteligent, about something that is so obviously not art. There is no skill involved, or thought – Its just a lame dog on a chain. Anybody could do that, only the stupid ones would.
October 19th, 2007 at 3:23 am
I can’t see the point of keeping this dog tied and let it die for the purpose of art? why didn’t the artists do it to him selve.
To bad, RIP!
October 19th, 2007 at 3:24 am
What a merceless kind of abuse! This is not art, this is madness. Jail for animal abuse for this sicko!
October 19th, 2007 at 3:26 am
I’d like to see this guy stuffed, hanging from a lamp post. Just as an artistic expression.
An other idea might be to throw him – bleeding from several non lethal wounds – to some street dogs.
All in the name of art, of course.
October 19th, 2007 at 3:31 am
I like it! But I have my own version of it. I chain modern art artist up in a room and let them starve to death. It’s nearly the same only a different kind of animal.
The shock impact is really great. I’ve already been al over the news and now some stupid rich bastard want to pay me a load of cash for the corpse.
Whatever helps me pay the rent!
October 19th, 2007 at 3:34 am
[...] via [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 3:39 am
Forget the artist, why didn’t anyone do something?! Those visitors are just as guilty! If I had seen this, I’d rip out the etire wall with my bare hands if nesecary! Or at least give that poor animal the dog food that was just out of its reach!
October 19th, 2007 at 3:42 am
I dont have any words that can describe my feelings about this. This makes me so angry. This artist says that people cannot say anything about this because there also dogs that die on the streets. But those dogs can walk and try to find food for themselves. This so called artist ties the dog to a wall and let hem die there. This is so horrible. I wished I was there at the moment so I could do something for that dog. Now it’s too late..
October 19th, 2007 at 3:42 am
I hope this artist will die of cancer. In fact, I am sure god will punish him by giving him cancer. Please keep him in the spotlight so that we all can enjoy watching the cancer eating him.
October 19th, 2007 at 3:43 am
Stupid idiot that artists is.
The best art would be HIS face against a wall to be smashed.
October 19th, 2007 at 3:43 am
Whats next glue-sniffing kids ?
October 19th, 2007 at 3:45 am
Let the motherfucker die in the jungle. Tie him to a tree and let him die.
If i can get my hands on him i do it myself.
October 19th, 2007 at 3:45 am
VIEZE VUILE KANKERLIJER IS HET!!!
October 19th, 2007 at 3:47 am
Chain him and lock him. Stupid f*ck dont give him food
October 19th, 2007 at 3:57 am
All these people should die; prefferably situated in some creative artistic statement, such as a pile of staked humanoids, presented to you by 666…
It’s the peoples fault anyway the situation on this planet is so disgusting
Another civilization ends, and it’s up to you all if you’re worth the next level or will all be exterminated like any other creepy parasite plague!
AMEN
October 19th, 2007 at 4:00 am
sent him to me ,ill make art of him!!!
October 19th, 2007 at 4:01 am
This ‘artist’ has his head up his ass.
October 19th, 2007 at 4:01 am
i hate.d.a fkfj;oawehfiwehjpgfe
October 19th, 2007 at 4:05 am
i think that every time this artists work is shown people that visit the gallery should leave a can of dog food as a protest against him.
October 19th, 2007 at 4:06 am
All these comments are proof of one thing, this is art.
Doesn’t mean I would condone it, in fact I would have tried to stop it, but it was a display that evoked human emotion. That’s what makes powerful art.
October 19th, 2007 at 4:06 am
I would chain this guys b***s and leave him to rot without any food…
There are many people dying of hunger, why not try this on the artist?
October 19th, 2007 at 4:11 am
i would take the “artist” and chain up him, after that, i will let him die. He said this is art, didnt he??
October 19th, 2007 at 4:15 am
People here read “guy kills dog” and stop thinking.
Why does everyone go crazy when a dog dies in the gallery, and why does noone care when the same dog dies somewhere on the streets?
That’s the question he is trying to pose. So many dogs are dying on the street, he took the effort to, in his own way, bring this problem under the attention of the general public.
All other people just walk by.
October 19th, 2007 at 4:17 am
Oke so you think it’s normal to use a dog as art!
THAT DOG DIDN’t have any chance to walk en searching for food! cause it was on a fucking rope.
In my country there are no street dogs.
Dogs live in our houses and be treated like a family members.
October 19th, 2007 at 4:19 am
He’s probably suffering from the paintersdisease…
October 19th, 2007 at 4:27 am
YOU must be mentally not okay, like that sick artist!
that dog had no chance it was on a rope!
many people died in Afrika… do i put a child from Afrika on a rope in a gallery to make a statement?
October 19th, 2007 at 4:30 am
I hope the ‘artist’ will die and burn in hell!
October 19th, 2007 at 4:31 am
There are children dying all the time from starvation, as well. Would it be OK for an artist to pick one up off the street and put him or her on display for all to watch until death? Would you still consider that art?
October 19th, 2007 at 4:36 am
What a pile of shit that guy is, he thinks that is art or a statement! This dude needs to go back to Art school and pay attention!
October 19th, 2007 at 4:37 am
This “artist” better never come to the Netherlands, the artist is a sick human, lets do this with sick humans. It is easy to kill a dog, and you call this art ??, i hope they do the same with the sick artist. Then i will come and take a look !!.
October 19th, 2007 at 4:37 am
Art sucks bigtime!
October 19th, 2007 at 4:40 am
that pictures just make me sick.
what did that dog do to deserve starvation?
on the street he could at least find his food.
hopefully someone does the same with his wife and kids as art.
than he can watch every day how his family is starving to death.
why do people think they are better than animals so they can do such horrible things.
i rather trust an dog than an human being as an good friend
October 19th, 2007 at 4:49 am
Sick animal abuser
October 19th, 2007 at 4:58 am
you people and your kneejerk mob responses are the art piece, he let a dying dog die and now all of you, right on cue, are desperately craving violence against another fellow human being. if you had seen this sick dog dying in an alley very few of you would have done a damn thing, but suddenly now you’re saints of righteous indignation.
meanwhile so many children are dying around you and you stop by starbucks for your latte and keep on moving, can’t be bothered.
October 19th, 2007 at 4:59 am
Guillermo Habacuc Vargas, I hope you’ll never pass my way becuase I will hurt you so bad you wish you would be dead, you sick bastard!
October 19th, 2007 at 5:02 am
I suggest we should chain the artist, not feeding him and let him feel the same…
October 19th, 2007 at 5:05 am
wtf?
who the hell is this artist??or is he an artist at all?? The pictures are outrageous and no way you can put your point or whatever bullshit by giving pain to harmless animal like this, this is sick!!
Lets make an art now, how about a fuckin dyin artist wrapped in chains?
give ur call guys!!
October 19th, 2007 at 5:09 am
[...] it either and then waits for it to die. And calls it art. I know how it sounds, but it’s real. ‘Artist’ Chains Up Dog Until It Dies… Is This Art? Or Animal Abuse? | The GinBlog … So this is art? I thought flying in two carbomb wrecks from Iraq and displaying them in the market [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 5:16 am
We mankind make the same art every day
daily 25,000 people die of hunger
instead of producing more food to provide these 25,000 people of something to eat we produce more corn, soyabeans and canesucre to make biofuells of it with which we fuell our cars
we do so because we have to make sure our economy stays on a growlevel/scenario and we use those fuells because we don’t want to pollute our enviorement
but still our economy goes not well, why is that?
that is because we forget to feed an extra 25,000 people a day with something to eat so they stay a live to buy the products we unnessecerelay overproduce
indeed we have very strange economic principles
in dutch
zo maken wij mensen wel meer van dergelijke kunst
op dit moment sterven dagelijks 25.000 mensen direct door of aan de gevolgen van de honger
i.p.v. meer voedsel te produceren om deze mensen eten te geven, produceren we meer maïs, soya en suikerriet om er biobrandstof van te maken voor onze slurpende amerikaan of duitser
want onze economie moet draaien en die economie van ons is anders erg vervuilend en dat willen we niet
maar waarom draait onze economie zo slecht?
we verzuimen voedsel te verkopen, dus geld te verdienen met het verkopen van voedsel aan per dag een extra 25.000 mensen
we produceren elke dag van alles en nog wat, dat we eigenlijk niet nodig hebben, maar we kunnen het ook niet verkopen omdat er elke dag 25.000 mensen minder zijn waaraan we het kunnen verkopen
hele vreemde economische principes houden we er op na
October 19th, 2007 at 5:16 am
October 19th, 2007 at 5:18 am
This MOFO deserves to die.
October 19th, 2007 at 5:18 am
I call bullshit. I don’t believe this happened. There are no real news sources for this story; everything is a blog or a petitions site. Do you really believe that a dog could be starved publicly without causing an outcry? Newspapers and TV news programs live for this stuff. Find a real news source or admit it is someone’s idea of a joke.
October 19th, 2007 at 5:21 am
Guillermo Habacuc Vargas is a killer.
He is no more of an artist than Mark Chapman.
October 19th, 2007 at 5:28 am
there’s really no excuse whatsoever for this animal cruelty. i know we don’t live in the middle ages anymore but this ‘artist’ deserves the same fate.
October 19th, 2007 at 5:32 am
You got to be kidding waht kind off gallery aproved this kind off anymall crouwlty??????
i,f is was up to me to punisch that raving lunatic i would tie up in chains en told everyone not to feed him of give him water let him die slowly .
verry verry slowly that muther f***********
rest in peace dear dog !!!
October 19th, 2007 at 5:32 am
Too bad Guillermo Habacuc Vargas is not living in my town. I would like to bring him a personal visit then!
I would pay a lot of money to kick Guillermo Habacuc Vargas his fat ass!!!
October 19th, 2007 at 5:35 am
If i ever run into this guy , i will run him down with my car and let him stay there untill he dies and will call it art to.
He’s just a sick piece of ….. Why didnt he tied himself down then he would be an artist in my eyes.
October 19th, 2007 at 5:36 am
this man must get the sentence such as he that to that dog have given!
Is this art??! where has this finished within some years?
animals have also right survive!
October 19th, 2007 at 5:42 am
This is sick. we’re sinking.
October 19th, 2007 at 5:49 am
You sick fuck!
October 19th, 2007 at 5:50 am
Can’t you see? The artist is trying to show us how easily people can be brainwashed. How easy it is to have people just follow orders. Do what they are told. ‘Do not feed this dog’, and then people don’t feed it. Because they are told so. Makes you think back to WWII and the Holocaust. ‘Kill jews, because that is what’s good.’ And people did it. Or Rwanda: ‘Tutsi’s are cockroaches, they must be crushed’. And people did it. Or indeed the experiments somebody else was talking about in the comments, where people were asked to ask other people questions, and if the answer was wrong, they had to give them an electric shock. You couldn’t SEE the questionned people, but you could hear them. And even though they were screaming often, most people still gave the shocks. Because they were told to.
Lesson: Always, always ask yourself: WHY?
October 19th, 2007 at 5:53 am
all those people in this thread that are so worried about this incident might wonder if there isnt any far greater animal abuse in a store near to them that they should worry about.
October 19th, 2007 at 5:54 am
It would be a great performance if he tied himself up on the Bienal Centroamericana Honduras 2008
and say to the audience not to feed him.
It would be a much better project to see this ashole die .
October 19th, 2007 at 5:54 am
[...] rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rnrnrnrnrnrnrnrn rn rn rn rn ‘Artist’ Chains Up Dog Until It Dies… Is This Art? Or Animal Abuse? | The GinBlog …rnrnHoe gek moet het worden? rn rn rn rn rn rn rn rn __________________rn [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 6:04 am
What an asshole, this isn’t art – it’s just abuse. Art can never come about by the direct murder or execution of any living thing. You have the freedom to express yourself, but within reason – you can’t go about sacrificing an unwillingly participant. This guy should be imprisoned if not worse.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:06 am
don’t rationalize the artist’s actions, this is sick.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:10 am
@nosaj:
“but i mean it’s life man. it’s cruel and inhumane. people are dying everywhere in the world as much as i’m sure dogs are dying, both for food and lack there of. so why should you be up in arms over one dogs life?”
Why? To try to stop this kind of inhumanity, this callousness for it’s own sake from happening. If you don’t, nobody will. If nobody does, then art galleries will fill with stinking dog carcasses. Then art critics will redfine ‘art’ based on whatever is presented to them in the galleries. Notice a pattern?
October 19th, 2007 at 6:12 am
This guys deserves to be chained and starved to death for the sake of all that is right in this world. The day someone pays some kids to find him and torture him for the sake of art…i’ll gladly go to that exhibit!!! And the other people who didn’t stand up against this to save the poor animal should be put on a ship then dumped somewhere in the middle of the ocean. Seriously, what does this say about our society now in days?
October 19th, 2007 at 6:14 am
I don’t care what the ‘artist’ is trying to say. In no stretch of the imagination is this art. This is sick.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:19 am
Regardless of how sick the dog was this is sick and disgusting get the dog put down if it was suffering that much or get it some help.
I would have prefered some body chain up the artist with a sign saying don’t feed him. If he was trying to make a point or some gesture he has done it in a poor manner. In my eyes all he has done was bring more suffering to a poor animals life which is honestly, evil.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:23 am
The ‘artist’ should be chained to a wall and left to die.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:31 am
I would like to respectfully disagree with the part of this comment that claims that we not need hold death under peoples noses for them to understand it. I in fact think that a majority of people in our day and age do not fully grasp the concept of death especially when it comes to animals. Even just take a look at our grocery stores and the variety of meats available for consumption. Do people really ever take the time to think about the fact that an animal (possibly much worse off than this dog) gave its life in a gruesome manner to become that consumable portion of meat? And here I want to make clear that I myself am not an animal rights activist or a vegetarian even for that matter. I eat meat regularly and have assisted in a few different animal slaughters head on, so let me tell you, unless you have watched the animal die and then eaten its flesh, you have not paid it full respect. Anyway, I ramble. Whether or not this is art is purely semantics. Is it raising questions that would not have been raised otherwise? Quite obviously. Is the price of the dogs life worth such an effect? That is the real ethical question.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:37 am
Its disgusting, it makes people scream animal cruelty…but make no mistake, it is still art. Art isn’t always Mickey Mouse, abstract paint, and illustrations on coffee cups. He was making a statement. It was loud, it was fierce, and most people won’t be able to get over the medium, but as art is, he had to do it anyway.
As for the incident itself, how many of you shocked and horrified people actually help strays on the street when you see them? For that matter, who helps the homeless, or helps vote better politicians in to office to help other people world-wide??? If any of you where there, and someone told you “don’t feed the dog” you would walk out pissed and miserable and bitch to your coworkers and friends for the next week. No one would actually try to do anything to help. The artist probably knew this, which amplified his stage even further to the point.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:38 am
What a fucking dickhead.
He should die.
I want to kill him right now.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:40 am
[...] died in the gallery. He calls himself an artist. I call him an animal abuser. fallon wonder womanread more | digg [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 6:41 am
If someone tortured this “artist” to death in front of an audience, would they think that it was art?
Besides the fact that this guy has an obvious mental defect, what’s wrong with all of the other people who stood by and let it happen?
Yes, I know we all “stand by” and let other things happen like poverty and the like. However, this is a purposely manufactured tragedy that would take no effort to correct.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:49 am
“ART”?! This is the purest animal abuse I’ve ever seen.. I’d love to use the words of Steven Seagal (ok, ok, ok, it’s not the most respectfull ‘artist’, but whatever..) said in one of his movies: “Fuck you and die”.. and that’s just an understatement. Asshole.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:57 am
The dog was sick and didn’t want to eat. – It is written on the page. you should be prosecuted.
October 19th, 2007 at 7:07 am
lets put Guillermo Habacuc Vargas on a chain without food!!!
October 19th, 2007 at 7:10 am
Jeremias: “By doing this outrageous art experiment, this artist has gotten people to talk and wake up.”
Maybe somebody should do the same for torture or rape. Those are really important subjects.
Cos like, people need to wake up, yeah?
So, are you ready to volunteer to be the subject of the ‘art’?
October 19th, 2007 at 7:10 am
[...] tym co zobaczyliśmy tutaj piątek upływa nam trochę na dyskusji jak poprawić świat. Dyskusja zdaje się być lekko [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 7:12 am
yes, people to talk about how this artist is a douche.
can i go to africa, adopt a starving child and chain it to a pole in the middle of your local neighborhood square and say don’t feed it? or ly? why not? im just making a statement. I don’t knwo who said but, but “Diversity. Had enough?” is on point here. How much more tolerant are we going to get for fear of offending someone? Borat brought light to how lightly you can say I need a gun to kill jews in this country and he didn’t need to starve anyone.
October 19th, 2007 at 7:13 am
i’m an artist, and all for free expression. but free expression has to have its limits. this guy is not an artist, but a sadist. what he did was morally and ethically wrong. whatever his point was, he could have made it without killing the dog. sick.
as for ‘Fred 2007-10-18 14:14:34′… go fuck yourself. what on earth does diversity have to do with any of this?
October 19th, 2007 at 7:15 am
If a man letting a dog die causes you to desire to kill children you have far deeper issues than any artist.
October 19th, 2007 at 7:21 am
I’m thinking of becoming an artist, please i need the adres of the “artist” form the artpiece shown above so i can starve him in a gallery.
October 19th, 2007 at 7:22 am
What a disgusting waste of life. Someone should chain up this artist, see if he likes having a bunch of ‘art-loving’ morons watch him die.
Just sickening.
October 19th, 2007 at 7:23 am
This is to Fred Re: “This guy deserves to die.”
I own 3 dogs and love them all dearly, but in a country where there are thousand a diesease ridden street dogs, it was bound to happen anyways, I’m not justifying what the “artist” did, but he doesn’t deserve to die Fred……..Peace Guys………
October 19th, 2007 at 7:24 am
As an art lover, I can tell you that this is not art. I do say hell no, and would like to chain this man up and not feed him.
October 19th, 2007 at 7:26 am
This artist is a fucken disgusting! I just home one day someone chains you up and watches you die like the fucken animal that you are. This is just unmoral and sadistic! I hope no one buys your art and you die a long painful death!!!
October 19th, 2007 at 7:31 am
nazi’s!!
October 19th, 2007 at 7:42 am
no can’t say that its art
October 19th, 2007 at 7:43 am
Its not art, its entertainment
October 19th, 2007 at 7:49 am
Someone should chain him up next and not feed him for some even better art!
October 19th, 2007 at 8:02 am
I hope somebody kills this man in a terrible way……
October 19th, 2007 at 8:05 am
I think it does say something and yes I am an artist. It says something en-light of the Michael Vick stuff and other cases dealing with animal abuse.
HOWEVER the approach was wrong, if it were me i would have used a corpse of a dog who had already died, rather than actively kill the dog. It would have still stirred controversy, but would have been more humane. That might have defeated the artists point, but still it would have been better.
October 19th, 2007 at 8:09 am
this guy is sick… thats not art… some one tie him up
October 19th, 2007 at 8:10 am
and we gasp in horror when we hear of incidents whereby dogs maul their owners?
damnit, this is abject cruelty, why doesn the artist inflict his ‘artistic inspiration’ himself instead? anyway artists gain more reputation after they’re dead . pfffft.
October 19th, 2007 at 8:14 am
Nosaj,
Your argument is completely invalid. If you’re trying to give a philosophical point or debate semantics I can obviously see how you take a negative stance, but your comment holds no water.
The article specifically states that he hired two kids to catch the dog, then it contradicts that by stating it was already tied up. Aside from that, This “Artist” PURPOSELY obtained the dog, keep it away from the general public, tied it in a corner where no one could free it, AND specifically told people to NOT feed it.
Not sure where you’re from, it doesn’t really matter actually, but here in NY, even if we see a strange dog(whether we fear it or not), some of us go out of our way and spare scraps or spend the 69 cents for a cheap can of dog food, open it and leave it around the area in which the dog hung around, to give it, another shot at life(and thats the minimum some people do).
Your downtrodden emo approach to life is “We’re all going to die anyways” is no way to live. But if you want to take that approach; when you do in fact die, don’t you want it to be on YOUR terms. Or are you stating you don’t really mind if we bagged you up, threw you in a corner, chained you up, told people not to feed you, and have people gaze in amazement at our new decorative piece?
October 19th, 2007 at 8:19 am
Another reason to keep those sick Spicks out of our country.
October 19th, 2007 at 8:20 am
too bad it wasn’t you.
October 19th, 2007 at 8:20 am
the “other language” in the link is spanish you ignorant bastard
October 19th, 2007 at 8:27 am
Usually, I find modern art absurd and soulless. In this case, it is barbaric. I would like to rip out his intenstines and splatter them on his mother’s wall and call that my masterpiece.
October 19th, 2007 at 8:28 am
This guy need to die. To treath a poor animal like this is sick. There’s another person who did it also: Saddam Hussein. Think that says enough.
phil herman,,I don’t understand it either. Are those people SICK??
October 19th, 2007 at 8:30 am
[...] През август, по време на фестивала “Bienal Centroamericana Honduras” пуерториканецът Джилермо Варгас е представил своето изкуство, като е завързал улично куче в галерията, предупреждавайки всички посетители да не го хранят. Животното е умряло от глад същия ден. Снимки и още за този случей, разгневил множество природозащитници – тук. [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 8:40 am
The artist should be chained up, and starved to death.
October 19th, 2007 at 8:41 am
Where does he live ? Anyone living close to this person ?
time to screw him up. lol
October 19th, 2007 at 8:50 am
this is cruel and sick. i think we should starve this person in a gallery and tell people to treat him like an animal. im an artist and this is NOT art. this is sadistic.
October 19th, 2007 at 8:51 am
This guy is sick. This is definitely animal abuse.
I hope some guys will pick him up, take him home and chain him up until he himself dies.
October 19th, 2007 at 9:00 am
How can he call himself an artist if he has so limited creativity? There are thousand other ways to portray the same message. There is no art in destruction. The man is a murderer and so are all the attendants who did nothing to save the dog. Shame on you. He’s a snob and a narcissist. He should be arrested and scorned for that. Shame on you, shame on you.
October 19th, 2007 at 9:00 am
should anyone kill this idiot for art?
October 19th, 2007 at 9:01 am
i agree with you , this man is sick and so are the people that went and just looked at the dog
October 19th, 2007 at 9:02 am
If he had done this to himself, then it would have been art. That would have been a powerful piece. I understand what he was trying to do, but it is wrong.
Another approach he could have taken was to ask a junkie to fix as much as he wanted in a confined area till he OD’ed.
I would be fine with either choice because in both instances the person knowingly is harming themselves. The dog is an innocent victim. Shame on anyone that saw that poor animal and did nothing.
October 19th, 2007 at 9:09 am
The point is, this was called ART. It wasn’t set up as a political statement, or as a statement to bring wider awareness to issues of animal abuse. And the “artist” cannot argue that he was trying to make a political statement because he left that animal to die. And he made money from people who paid to see such sadistic trash.
What he did was not clever or even thought-provoking. Resorting to shock tactics to create so-called “art” is a cheap trick, and in this case is cruel, unnecessary and sadistic.
Yes, this happens every day, does that mean we have to endorse it? He could have saved that dog, and so could have anyone who went to the exhibition. Your argument says is that as there are millions of starving animals (humans incl) out there there is no point even saving one life!
October 19th, 2007 at 9:13 am
Hey Now, Well said, If you need a teammate, I will be in the on deck circle…
October 19th, 2007 at 9:17 am
let’s chain this so called artist and let him die, in the name of art
October 19th, 2007 at 9:24 am
I can imagine the dog lovers are up in arms about this… the same dog lovers that abandon their dogs for 9 hours straight every day while they work.
At least this abject cruelty was short relative to the protracted neglect over years I see from most dog “lovers”.
October 19th, 2007 at 9:29 am
His reasoning behind the art is dumb. Its like saying, people are dying everyday in Iraq and no one is doing anything about it, so lets shoot a guy in the head here in my art gallery so people will be more aware of it… sick
October 19th, 2007 at 9:30 am
it doesn’t matter whether the dog would have died anyway or not. It matters what the “artist” did. And what this man did, is something that would be described by almost everyone you’ll meet as wrong.
What rubs me the wrong way is that he did it in the name of “art”. This tendency in the art world has long since annoyed the living daylights out of me. Apparently you can get away with anything these days, as long as you attach the proper label to it. And for useless, batshit insane stuff that wouldn’t be tolerated from someone with Down’s, it’s art.
October 19th, 2007 at 9:39 am
This person is sick. I hope he dies a more cruel death than that he had caused on the poor defenseless dog.
October 19th, 2007 at 9:39 am
[...] in the gallery. He calls himself an artist. I call him an animal abuser. harry potter slash fan ficread more | digg [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 9:50 am
I would like to tie that artist in a room and feed him piss until he dies.
October 19th, 2007 at 9:53 am
you’re kidding????
if it’s real, this artist’s STUPID!!!!
October 19th, 2007 at 9:58 am
Dear Steve,
I took in 3 stray dog over the past years. Yes,- I do leave for work every morning, come home for lunch (every day) and when I get home, they have my FULL attention. While I am gone, they have food, water, toys and ..eachother. So…I AM a “dog-lover”, as you say. Does that put me in the same category as this freak? He killed a helpless dog for fame, I saved 3 dogs that would have starved without help. WAIT, WAIT…Yeah!!! I can see how we are alike….NEXT TIME: THINK BEFORE YOU WRITE A COMMENT !!!
October 19th, 2007 at 10:11 am
I would rather kill a human being than an animal.
I would like to strap Vargas into a chair and make him watch as I cut pieces off his mother with a rusty saw.
I hope Vargas himself dies an awful, awful, agonising death.
October 19th, 2007 at 10:15 am
This is how third world scum live. Honduras. What a wonderful, enlightened place that is! NOT!
Keep third world scum out of WHITE countries, for a start.
They hate animals as much as they hate people. That’s why their countries are shitty and dysfunctional: shocking child abuse is absolutely the norm for 99% of third world savages, which is WHY they are third world savages. Unable to trust, think, nor care for anybody but themselves, their societies are backward and war-torn.
October 19th, 2007 at 10:17 am
This is really discusting…. he should be BANNED
October 19th, 2007 at 10:23 am
Definitely a jackass. Please SIGN THE PETITION so he doesn’t get “awarded” for not having real talent and killing a poor dog that needed a home and calling that “art”
The best part of it: It just wasn’t enough to tie up the dog and leave it there: This “artist” wrote something on the wall next to the dog USING DOG FOOD. Food that he obviously never gave to the poor dog.
Not even Costa Ricans are happy with this guy. Everyone wants to do the same “artistic installation” with him.
October 19th, 2007 at 10:36 am
Thats fuckin awesome.
Most of you dont understand this art at all. Its called shock art, and it does get many points across.
Here are the points, in case you missed them.
1. Dogs are stupid
The dog was NOT chained to anything. A thin rope was used to tie the dog to a wire. An intelligent animal, like a cat, would of chewed through it. Or, if the animal is not stupid, then the animal chose to die.
2. Honduras is a shit hole
Now, all you call the artist bad names. It not like he did this to specifically kill the animal. He wanted to see if anyone would actually release the animal, would anyone have the audacity. It odd, that if people were told that he was an art exibit and not to feed him, and they saw him there for days on end, obviously sick, then why did they not release him….hmm….
So there you have it. The artist is guilty of nothing.
Go ahead, tie me up, just like that dog…..ill be out within the hour, even if you tied my hand, i would chew through the rope…
October 19th, 2007 at 10:36 am
I consider this a very sick man. Hopefully this kind of behavior will be banned from the world.
October 19th, 2007 at 10:38 am
What a sick man! I hope this kind of behavior will be banned from our planet!
October 19th, 2007 at 10:42 am
This is so revolutionary. L’Art pour l’art meme.
If a beast’s life is to be lost, so be it. Props to Mr. Habacuc.
October 19th, 2007 at 10:46 am
[...] einen macht derweil die Aktion des aus Costa Rica stammenden Künstlers Guillermo Vargas die Runde. Der auch als Habacuc bekannte Künstler inszenierte den Tod eines Hundes als Kunstwerk. Unter [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 10:49 am
Deliberately causing an animal to die by neglect is not art. Even non-activists and non-animal-lovers can see this is cruelty of an extreme extent. Its the same as sadistically torturing and causing an animal to go through severe amounts of pain for your own pleasure and personal gain. Its DISGUSTING.
October 19th, 2007 at 11:01 am
You piece of fucking shit, I’ve got an idea for some art, its me thrusting a crowbar up your ass for days at a time. Someone set this motherfucker on fire.
October 19th, 2007 at 11:14 am
shdwsclan, you sicko, the same should be done to you using handcuffs.
October 19th, 2007 at 11:16 am
Hope you die soon in a very painfull manner, and every visitor of this ‘gallery’ too !
October 19th, 2007 at 11:35 am
[...] is why this disgusting story about an artist from Costa Rica who paid (yes, paid) 2 children to catch a dog so that he coud tie [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 11:45 am
I have a beautiful pitbull, and if anything ever happened to her I don’t know what I’d do
October 19th, 2007 at 11:50 am
Why? I hate people like this, ART? are you FuCk%^&ng kidding me!
STOP him!!!
October 19th, 2007 at 12:00 pm
Who is more depraved–the “artist”, or the people that actually visited this gallery and went along with the slow, systematic torture of this helpless animal?
Thanks for further proving what I already know–most people funtional sociopaths.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:03 pm
@ Thomas:
If You think everything is allowed in the name of so called “art” than you are just as retarded as Mr. Habacuc thus you should be hanged by your balls.
Think about that You worthless piece of crap.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:10 pm
I’ll write it in french :
Cet homme mérite le même sort que celui qu’il inflige aux pauvres animaux sans défense – dommage que ce soit répréhensible
De plus quel exemple montre-t-il à ses enfants, impensable.
Quel avenir ces enfants là réserveront-ils au monde, je n’ose y penser.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:17 pm
I hope this motherfucking sicko burn in hell.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:50 pm
You realize these reactions are exactly the point the artist is trying to make. It also amazes me how this site has left out the key point the artist was trying to make. But of course..most probably wouldn’t care to investigate it.
October 19th, 2007 at 12:51 pm
people make mistakes; art is the first to learn those lessons. condemning this person is just ignorant; to say you dont agree with it is civil to send this person to hell is sinful. for who are to to judge and convict.
hell is for those who believe in it assholes…
October 19th, 2007 at 12:55 pm
Here is an artproject for you: Let´s tie the artist down in chains and let him starve to death. People should not feed him. If he is a true artist he should sacrifice everything for his art, including his life. What a sicko.
October 19th, 2007 at 1:00 pm
i hope somebody ties this sicko up so we can use him as art!
October 19th, 2007 at 1:00 pm
You Call This Art?!?!?! I call it Sick?!?!?!?!
You will pay for this.
October 19th, 2007 at 1:06 pm
What a sick fuck. And these Spics are invading our civilization. Deserves a bullet between the eyes.
October 19th, 2007 at 1:08 pm
Andres, no youre being ignorant.
makers of this should stand trial for this.
i hope they get hard punischment.
this art isnt art and proving a point, its just a gimmick. Disgrace!
October 19th, 2007 at 1:12 pm
Not a dog lover but this is horrendous.
October 19th, 2007 at 1:19 pm
You don’t have to believe in Hell for it to be real. It just IS.
And this scum-bag excuse of a person, unless he believes in Jesus, repents of ALL his sins, (especially this sick one), and accepts Christ into his life will most DEFINITELY go to Hell. And I’m sure if he does, Satan will devise a very creative torture method for him that’s worse than what he did to this dog.
October 19th, 2007 at 1:19 pm
One question to those who say they would have done something:
What did you do the last time you visited the zoo and the zookeeper told you not to feed the animals?
Did you rip the bars open with your bear hand hand present the lions with your cucumber sandwiches?
No, didn’t think so.
I guess you don’t adopt every stray you see on the street or fly to the nearest war-torn country and adopt every child you meet either…
October 19th, 2007 at 1:31 pm
I would like to have that guy in my exhibition.I am doing an art-project on people and their pets.
Reading the article,I’ve got the idea to put this so called artist in the same position as the unfortunated dog.I prommiss I will keep him alive during the exebition and afterwards will put him to sleep,permenently!
October 19th, 2007 at 1:40 pm
Let’s tie him too! (only for a week , and lets see his bone-arts: Lets just not kill him)
October 19th, 2007 at 2:18 pm
The artist, the event, the country… what the fuck?
October 19th, 2007 at 2:42 pm
The sick bastard, he deserves tenfold worse than this.
I hope he rots in hell.
October 19th, 2007 at 3:00 pm
Heey, you f#cking SOB!
Don’t come to the Netherlands, I WILL find you and let you eat your own balls!
October 19th, 2007 at 3:11 pm
Thats lame, this guy thinks hes an artist, hes just full of himself.
October 19th, 2007 at 3:14 pm
This bastard needs to be killed – let me do it. I promise to make him suffer far more than that poor dog did. It would make me very happy to kill this vile freak.
October 19th, 2007 at 3:23 pm
This dog probably would have died on the street anyways. What a bunch of hypocrits! If you walked by this dog on the street you all would have passed by and done nothing. Dog dying = no big loss. Spend your energy on something useful.
October 19th, 2007 at 3:24 pm
So the entire citizenry of Hondorus are shithead freaks allowing animals to be treated like this? Everyone single bastard who walked into that so-called exhibit shoudl be in jail for allowing it to go on!!! They are all guilty. The freak artist needs to be killed ASAP before he does this again, but all those people who stood around while this dog was dying in agony all need to be tossed in jail. What kind of vile and heinous country is this anyway?? Nuke em all
October 19th, 2007 at 3:31 pm
[...] the gallery. He calls himself an artist. I call him an animal abuser. teen titans blackfire hentairead more | digg [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 3:39 pm
I want that useless waste of flesh that thinks torturing an animal is “art”, and all the filth that allowed it to happen, to be starved to death tied a foot short of a huge feast. To limpdick Bob Sundy, at least the poor thing would have had a chance to eat. It was tied up iwth no hope of avoiding the suffering. I hope you suffer on the way out too, you nauseating swine. I feed starving animals if I see them you maggot.
October 19th, 2007 at 4:10 pm
You’d think the bastards standing around looking at it would have done something.
October 19th, 2007 at 5:07 pm
Re: to Bob Sundy,
Are you serious?? How can possibly predict what someone like myself would do? Maybe you would walk right by a starving homeless dog, but I for one would never. And just what do YOU recommend we spend our energy on? I’m very interested to know. Apparently, being humane, caring or even compassionate is useless? It’s because of thoughtless people like you that things like this and much worse for that matter, will continue to go on with no repercussions.
October 19th, 2007 at 5:13 pm
Everyone is so bitter about what this made did. Are you all so fucking retarded as to get emotional about the death of ONE animal. Thousands of fully-conscious animals–and let’s not forget us humans–are mistreating and killed, daily, and this guy deserves to rot in hell? You’re all so fucking retarded.
October 19th, 2007 at 5:31 pm
put him in prison with Mr. Vick but first strave him (almost) to death
October 19th, 2007 at 6:10 pm
I think we should tie up this man and watch [i]him[/i] starve to death. That would actually qualify as art.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:17 pm
Dogs have been breed over millenia to seek human affection and trust humans above all else. This is a grost misuse of this situation, and the man responsible is heartless and cruel. Everyone who sponsored this show should be boycotted. I regret that I feel compelled to comment on this because this is probably exactly what the “artist” wanted, and I bet he is reading these comments and having a good laugh right now.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:28 pm
[...] dog died in the gallery. He calls himself an artist. I call him an animal abuser. X Men storylineread more | digg story RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI Cartoons Fans Lounge [...]
October 19th, 2007 at 6:41 pm
It says in Spanish:
On the wall at the end that you see from the entrance, the text read: You are what you read. The letters were made up of dog food.
A sick street dog died in the gallery because they didn’t feed it.
I found out that the dog died the following day because of a lack of food. During the inauguration, I found out that the dog was chased between houses of aluminum and cardboard in a Barrio (poor neighborhood) of Managua called Santo de Habacuc. I couldn’t verify this at the time. The 5 Children that helped in the pursuit, were given 10 Cordobas for their help. During the exhibition, some of the gallery-goers asked that the dog be freed, which the artist refused. The name of the dog was “Natividad.” He was left to die of hunger in full view of everyone. It was as if the death of a poor dog was purely an interesting event, in that nobody did anything more than applaud or look disconcerted.
We definetly are what we eat: Pure dog food.
In the area where the dog was “exhibited,” there was only a metal cable and a rope. The dog was tremendously sick, hardly able to walk, and didn’t want to eat anyhow. He would have died anyhow of natural causes. That’s how it is with all the poor (street) dogs. Sooner or later, they all die.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:44 pm
I agree with joanne. That one picture of everyone standing around, having cocktail chatter with each other, right in front of this abomination…it made me literally sick to my stomach. After actually crying for a bit, I thought about how I would’ve immediately ripped that chain out of the wall and taken that dog to the nearest vet, then to my home! If art is meant to provoke, it sure as Hell would’ve put me into action.
October 19th, 2007 at 6:55 pm
I reckon someone may have already brought this up, but have any of you considered the possibility that the immediate juxtaposition of “art enthusiasts” and the starving dog in the room is supposed to be a direct metaphor for the national and global disparity of wealth and income, and that your outrage over this single suffering dog, but not all the people this dog represents, is exactly the point of this piece?
October 19th, 2007 at 7:18 pm
I think it’s an interesting exhibit. I don’t understand why people are upset. It’s a dog, not a human. Some humans are so lonely and pathetic that they try to humanize animals to fill a void in their life. And most of these same humans are hypocrites because they have no problem eating meat. A dog is no different than a cow in that regard. I have had both dog and cat and it’s quite tasty.
I have seen another exhibit where they had 6 blenders lined up with a live kitten inside of each of them. By the end of the night every one of the blenders had its button pushed and the kittens were chopped up. I do consider that art because it put out a message that anyone can relate to.
October 19th, 2007 at 7:18 pm
I hope someone hunts him down and kills him. He better watch his back! What sick delusional son-of-a-bitch could even consider doing that and have the audacity to call it art? I want to see him DEAD AND ROTTING! What slime!
October 19th, 2007 at 7:28 pm
This is horrible. If he would have starved himself ini a gallery with images of starving children, it would have been more of an artistic statement.
I agree with Joanne
“You’d think the bastards standing around looking at it would have done something.”
Why did’nt anyone else report this guy or let the dog go? Amazing?
October 19th, 2007 at 8:51 pm
Awesome exhibition – pity they didn’t use my neighbours dog – barks too much
October 19th, 2007 at 9:40 pm
Totally disgusting, did no one think to call the Animal control on this supposed work of art? How many people walked past this exhibit of cruelty and said nothing?
October 19th, 2007 at 9:42 pm
Did no one who walked past this so called exhibit of art complain or report it to the SPCA, or Animal control? What was wrong with those people that they could see that and not report it?
October 19th, 2007 at 10:08 pm
This is fucking disgusting. I am an art major an can completely appreciate the difficulty of making an artistic statement in this day and age, but the torture of innocents, be it dog, goldfish, or child is completely reprehensible. It is not art in any way, shape or form. I cannot believe that no one at least stepped forward and put the poor dog out of its misery. I don’t care that dogs are not as pampered in that culture as they are in the US, deliberately torturing an animal to death should be abhorrent to any civilized human. If I could find this guy I would string him up by his nuts in a glass box for passeres by to gawk and leave him there with a dull fucking spoon for company and see how he felt about the situation.
October 19th, 2007 at 10:20 pm
[...] ‘Artist’ Chains Up Dog Until It Dies… Is This Art? Or Animal Abuse? | The GinBlog | Less Talk,… Possibly the most twisted, fucked up thing I’ve seen in quite some time. He should be in jail, not a gallery. (tags: animal murder abuse dog fuckedup) [...]
October 20th, 2007 at 1:48 am
People that appreciate art are people that appreciate life. This is natural because without life, you cannot enjoy art.
take away life, you take away art. At some point we have to stop accepting this BS that morons consider art, fools weigh in on as “co;ol”, and the rest of us remain silent.
Don’t just comment here. Sign the petition. Who cares what happens to the guy, but if we send the message, loud and clear that this is does not deserve the title “art”, then maybe, morons will stop killing innocents in the name of “art”
October 20th, 2007 at 1:59 am
Oh, and by the way,
All you whiners, saying that, “the dog deserved to die”, “the dog would have died anyway”, and particularly “i wish it was my neighbors dog”….
are you so desensitized by the violence and death that you see on TV that you can’t accept the gravity of this situation?
Do you not realize that what you see on TV while you sit on your couch, adding to the “count” of “who’s watching” is NOT REAL????
You just condemned to death an innocent creature because your selfish brain couldn’t wrap itself around the value of life?
I just hope that when it is your eternal soul on the line, the “judge and jury” are a little more lenient than you.
Why don’t you go out and chain up a living thing and watch it as it starves to death.
Your “idealistic” view of what went down here is sick. You have nothing to base your commendation of this act on. You think this is TV? What does it matter if one life is ended? Who Cares? WE DO. The ones that have commented here do. The ones that have signed the petition do.
Does that mean that attention should not be turned on the other attrocities against humanity (and other living things)? NO, NO, NO. All of these things deserve attention. But not at the cost of MORE lives.
Throwing away this dogs life is not the way to draw attention to the horror of animal (and human) cruelty. This is no better than “paying” money to someone to help you with your gambling addiction.. or trying to drink away you alcoholism. YOU ARE NOT HELPING ANYONE. so stop before you hurt anyone else.
October 20th, 2007 at 2:21 am
How sick can you be!?
I hope signing the petition will help a bit…
October 20th, 2007 at 5:05 am
I hope this freak gets run down by a steam roller and has to have his remains scraped off the street.
He should use self-induced gangrene on his body parts as art instead of torturing innocent animals.
I can’t come up with a foul word befitting as it is yet to be created. He must be a reincarnation of the Satan himself.
October 20th, 2007 at 7:18 am
Ban that motherf*cker! I surely hope he rots in hell!
October 20th, 2007 at 8:25 am
This story is shocking. But what should be more shocking is the fact that dogs die in this same way (albeit with out the supposed “art” element) every day in this country, as it is legal, even considered acceptable, to keep a dog chained 24/7 in most places in this country. Perpetually chained dogs constantly die from starvation, thirst and neglect. Chains wrapped around trees, out of sight, out of mind to the owners. Dogs spent pacing the same patch of dirt and feces for five, ten, fifteen years. I see it every day as a volunteer for Dogs Deserve Better. Learn what you can do to change minds and laws at http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org.
October 20th, 2007 at 8:50 am
[...] unbounded–will it catch on with connoisseurs? Artist chains and starves dog to death for gallery art exhibit. For this sort of thing Tom Wolfe may just have to update The Painted [...]
October 20th, 2007 at 9:31 am
Let’s chain him in a corner, starve him to death, and call it art.
He’ll at least die for his ’cause’, and be part of performance art like very few ‘artistes’ get to be.
October 20th, 2007 at 9:41 am
no offense to anyone here, but have any of you been to honduras??? there are barley any human services there, let alone animal control. although i don’t agree with the artist’s manner of going about proving a point, i see what he is saying. did any of the gallery goers even think to disobey the request not to feed the dog???? or better, cut the dog loose????
i think he is proving a point of selfish human existence, and the lack of humanitarianism in the honduran culture. hell, when i was there i met kids who were living in cardboard boxes without parents and no one else gave any thought to helping them…
October 20th, 2007 at 10:23 am
No one stopped this guy?
What a bunch of pussies.
I’d have beat his ass and then fed the dog.
Lack of action is approval you know.
October 20th, 2007 at 10:53 am
Guillermo Habacuc Vargas probably hasn’t a real talent so he tries something like this to make a point. All these artist who think people want to hear their points and their expressions. Get over yourselves!
By the way, did you see those two planes crash in the towers? What a great piece of art was that huh? Those terrorists, they are so creative! So wonderful what jet fuel can do. Amazingly skilled and daring artists. And the collapsing, beautiful!
October 20th, 2007 at 11:28 am
Thanks for bringing this out in the open. This is so unbelievable sick.. These guys have no respect whatsoever for living beings. If this is art, this only gives me one more reason to plead for the end of this madness.. there should be limits to what people can do “in the name of Art”..
This guy should be banned.. and should never, ever be able to perform / show in public again..
Bastard…
October 20th, 2007 at 11:32 am
[...] read more | digg story [...]
October 20th, 2007 at 11:38 am
Stick this piece of human shit, Guillermo Habacuc Vargas, and his apologist, ED, in a cage and let them starve to death.
October 20th, 2007 at 1:07 pm
I cannot believe this . . .
What really makes me mad is that there are all of these people in the room with the dog, who did nothing to stop it! Ridiculous! I am so sick of “contemporary artists” torturing and killing animals, probably to satisfy some sort of weird fantasy or something, and disguising it as art. I would like the artist to know what it feels like to be put on display as he starves to death! So unbelievably cruel. . .
October 20th, 2007 at 3:42 pm
If I ever saw that guy I’d kick his ass.
Worthless POS
October 20th, 2007 at 4:29 pm
Misty at 335.. I shudder to think of what behavior you will excuse just because of a lack of ‘services’.
Your children must be perfect angels in your mind.
Wonder what your neighbors think of the little dears.
October 20th, 2007 at 9:23 pm
Let’s think about this for a moment:
The article may not be true. It doesn’t name the gallery nor any news source which verifies the story.
There may be more to the incident than meets the eye. How could two “children” go about catching a dog. Was the dog on the verge of death to where a warm, dry, sheltered museum environment was better than cruel streets with predators, pain, etc?
How long would the dog lived otherwise? Did the creature have a throat or other condition that made feeding it a worse alternative?
Yes, there was a “link” to click on, but I wasn’t about to chance a computer virus for “more information.”
Okay, that said, I welcome reasoned responses; hate and threats are meaningless and a waste of your valuable time and energy.
October 20th, 2007 at 10:58 pm
[...] Since we are on dogs, this is insane (via Lancerlord; dog & animal lovers, bewarned). I like and support art but there should be a [...]
October 21st, 2007 at 12:25 am
This is outragous, please let us do the same with the artist.
October 21st, 2007 at 1:27 am
I do not understand how this guy could justify any kind of argument saying this is a piece of artwork.
I am crying, I am shocked, I don’t even know how to respond.
The most shocking part is that he was invited to be part of a bianaul (spelling way wrong, I know)
October 21st, 2007 at 3:45 am
We should do the same with this ‘so called artist’
October 21st, 2007 at 4:07 am
When I see that fucker he’s dead. I’m gonna kill him.
October 21st, 2007 at 4:17 am
when I that man see i kill hem, very slowly, I hope that hole his family will dy at an terrible dease
October 21st, 2007 at 12:12 pm
The irony is beautiful. Here we have an artist taking a sickly dog and displaying it’s dying process in a gallery. Not much different then say putting your grandparents in a “nursing home” and visiting them until they die. So on one hand you have the people open enough to wonder about what he said. And on the other hand you have people reacting emotionally, threatening to kill him in the most repugnant manners. This art then becomes an avenue for viewers to voice/think about how superior they (we) are to each other. I lived in a developing country for a year and a half. I saw hundreds, perhaps thousands of dogs living in the streets. Sickly dogs die. The artist did not kill it. He found a very sickly dog and put it in an environment where the dogs death could be isolated and observed and reacted to. Rather than the dog dying pointlessly under some bushes, or on a pile of rubble, its death has challenged thousands of people to think.
If this installation piece makes you want to kill the artist, perhaps you should stop eating the flesh of animals chained up in barns and factories..
ps. I spend half of three months income on veterinarians to care for sickly animals. It feels good, but doesn’t change anything.
October 21st, 2007 at 12:25 pm
I’m surprised that the institution where the dog was viewable or the people seeing the dog, didn’t do anything. I am surprised that it was received well enough that no one rescued the dog. I’d chain this guy up in a gallery with a plack for people to read of what he did, and leave a baseball bat next to it. His feet would be chained apart, and people would be encouraged to take swings, or kicks, whichever they prefer.
October 21st, 2007 at 1:54 pm
KILLER is the best word to define this idiot.
October 21st, 2007 at 3:42 pm
Tie the artist up and starve him. I’d like to hear what he has to say just before he dies.
Oh wait, people aren’t animals! Silly me, what was I thinking. We EAT animals, we don’t care about them. Hah, for a minute there I almost forgot that people are made in Gods image and that all the world was put here just for us.
DANG! I did it again, silly me. I almost forgot about the holocaust, slavery, weapons of mass destruction and war.
Get a grip on reality, people don’t care about anything or anyone but themselves. If you think you’re different, I have to ask you – when was the last time you fed anything or anyone that was starving?
October 21st, 2007 at 6:04 pm
This is not art, this is unlawful imprisonment, cruelty, torture, and murder! Since this criminal had kids go catch the dog, it was also planned, that is first-degree murder in this country, ie: pre-meditated or planned! It should be treated as such in any country really! What gives humans the right to choose who/what lives or dies, where when and how, let alone purposely to do so, and for ‘gain’ no less.
October 21st, 2007 at 7:34 pm
Do people here think at all before they comment?
For those advocating horrifying deaths to the artist, are you all in support of capital punishment? I also think what he did was cruel, but to suggest stoning him at the townhall would throw us back to a more uncivilized age. Murderers and rapists are treated better than what you suggest done to the artist.
As for the cruel treatment of animals, perhaps you should watch PETA videos and become vegetarians if you haven’t already. Human beings do cruel things to animals in the world every day.
What do people do when they pass by a dying animal, especially in a city? Would you also do something? Or is it like the 10th hungry homeless person whom you walk past without doing anything. Now imagine if the piece was a video of a dog dying instead … I’m sure most comments would be along the lines of “Oh a dying dog, how sad.”
I’m sure some of you will think I’m siding with the artist by not condemning him to death, when the fact is you can still discuss implications of something even if you disgree with it. The world isn’t black and white.
October 21st, 2007 at 10:39 pm
To Omi – Dear Omi, for your information, you are contradicting yourself as what this pseudo artist did was nothing else but murder.
Do you think the word murder apply only for human death? If so, you vocabulary and your mentality is really small. Even though you deny, if are defending this Mr. Habacuc.
Apparently you are unaware of the large number of people that support institutions that work only in defense of the animals. And also of the rising number of vegetarians. Even though to kill an animal to eat and save a life is something. That is life for life. Cruelty is other thing completely different. I think you as Mr. Habacuc have a problem with discernment.
October 22nd, 2007 at 3:04 am
And I always wonder why people expect ‘god,’ or any other ‘being(s)’ ‘higher’ than us to treat us any differently? No one ‘saved’ this dog from being tortured to death, and in the strictest terms evolution provided the circumstances by which these animals interacted. (However, since this interaction only reinforced negative traits in both species, science and art can for the moment be mutually exclusive.)
How many different ways can you express something beautiful about the animus of dog without resorting to exploitation and pornography? The artist really thinks it’s more imperative to state something in the abstract about a negative reality as though he could point at it without being cross referenced — and thus, negated. This is not art.
We didn’t evolve to this point so we could do foolish things to shock each other into numbness of the very qualities we’ve been endowed with. If you abuse something, you lose it and keep what you are. YOU ARE A PROBLEM THAT WILL BE ERASED
October 22nd, 2007 at 3:59 am
Oh my God, that is HORRIBLE. I can’t believe people can do things like that it’s just really wrong!
October 22nd, 2007 at 4:25 am
in italy only since 2 days our blogs are passing this news to ask people to sign petition.
about 40.000 now.
there is no words to define ‘artist’ ‘exibition’ and also the people at the gallery when dog was dying.
ciao from italy
violetta
October 22nd, 2007 at 6:16 am
i guess it is a hoax. watch out the different floor on the pictures…. i hope is not real!
October 22nd, 2007 at 7:37 am
art?!will the peoples called you a artist when you kill a life?!
what’s a shame?!
October 22nd, 2007 at 8:31 am
This is so inhumane, I can’t believe that someone would actually consider that to be art. I’m disgusted!
October 22nd, 2007 at 8:56 am
sick artist, he must be arrested in zoo
October 22nd, 2007 at 10:53 am
This is inhumane, the “artist” should be punished.
October 22nd, 2007 at 11:20 am
C’est cruel!!!!!
Cet “homme” et ceux qui regardent sans rien faire devraient subir la même chose.
Jusqu’ou ira la bétise humaine????
October 22nd, 2007 at 11:30 am
The aspect of this piece that really turned something inside me is the
roles of the audience and the hosts (gallery folks). Have we become so
separated and individualized that we not involve ourselves passionately
when we see something we feel is wrong? Judging by number of opposed
USFers, surely someone locally must have felt similar…and why did they
not act in accordance with their urge or empathy or conscience or anger?
(Simple too, save half your sandwich from your lunch or find a pair of
scissors and clip the rope, hold the door open.)
Is it because someone told them, “Don’t feed the dog. DON’T!” My, what
power the artist has. And surely the artist had planned what might happen
if someone tried to either rescue of feed the dog…?
Overall for me, this piece reveals the excuse that people tend to have,
“there’s nothing I can do about it”, like the war, or environment, or
whatever the issues are. If one is passionate enough to complain about it
- surely, there’s something that can be done. Figure it out. or
else…SERIOUS consequences.
October 22nd, 2007 at 11:50 am
While I think this is questionable as art, it is serving it’s purpose in bringing discussion about regarding poor and homeless animals plight in his country and many nations all over the world. Hopefully people will see this and help out how they can or spay and neuter their animals so there is a smaller homeless dog population. It sounds to me like this dog and hundreds other just like him would’ve starved anyway, with or without the exposure. Truly a tragic tale.
October 22nd, 2007 at 11:57 am
According to the Spanish web site, the dog was extremely sick and not wanting to eat, and would have died just as soon if it had been left on the street. The only difference is that when the dog is on display in the gallery, people can act shocked, but nobody is shocked or does anything when stray dogs are dying in the gutter.
October 22nd, 2007 at 2:52 pm
That’s disgusting…I hate seeing animals starve. ): Where I live it’s not common, but if it were I would buy food…one time a cat came into my backyard and I gave it food and he ate it right up!
Same thing happened when I was a kid…except the cat kept coming back.
Anyway, that’s not art, it’s disgusting. :/ He should have like…gave the dog food. I mean, ’cause if you had it caught and then you let it starve (even if it would’ve starved anyway) you now have the power to decide if the dog eats or not, so then it’s just torture and IF the dog refused to eat YOU TAKE IT TO A VET, DUH. -.-;
October 22nd, 2007 at 2:56 pm
ok… the dog died… the dog was suffering all the time… it’s necesary have an animal in that condition?, it’s not ART!!! plis!! i’m an artist, i think that this man don’t have the meaning of art… if you see an old man diying in a corner or a child!! like a presetation art… it’s obbiously that Guillermo Habacuc Vargas would be in jail… i want to see this man in a corner diying… we woul see if he is happy in that condition… y se me vienen a la cabeza miles de insultos… todo lo que va vuelve…
October 22nd, 2007 at 3:00 pm
It is never acceptable to cause suffering to a sentient being in order to make art. Period. Don’t care what the message is, don’t care what else the artist has done, don’t care what the artist thinks they are saying. Don’t care.
It is completely unacceptable. Period.
(Snopes.com is unsure of the the veracity of all of the particulars of this full story – http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/vargas.asp, and it may be as the gallery owner said – that it escaped in the night. Whatever. Don’t frikkin’ care, in the sense that it doesn’t make it any better. That this suffering dog was used as part of an art exhibition is heinous, and I don’t think there’s anything anyone in the world could say about his message or art that would convince me otherwise. And I am a visual artist, myself.)
It. Is. Just. Wrong. Period. And most people know in their hearts that that’s true, whatever b.s. they may spout about the wondrous message and beautiful irony, blah, blah, blah.
It. Is. Just. Wrong.
October 22nd, 2007 at 7:19 pm
A thought experiment:
What if it was a rat instead of a dog? What if the rat was fed to a snake as a exhibit, the same way rats are fed to pet snakes all the time?
Why is a dog’s life worth more than a rat? They’re both living animals and therefore deserve the same treatment.
October 22nd, 2007 at 7:25 pm
This is terrible, how could anyone not even feed that creature? So horrific..
October 22nd, 2007 at 8:27 pm
While i agree that this is a despicable act, that does not mean it is not art.
October 22nd, 2007 at 10:27 pm
What a sick pig. Taking a picture of a dog who might be suffering from natural conditions would be art. This is just sickening. I hope the dog haunts him in his sleep.
October 22nd, 2007 at 11:50 pm
to hazeo
its true. perhaps this particular news has been passed through on internet better than other similar ones ?
in any case i dont agree to ‘use’ animal for whatever different from their instinct.
sorry for my english .)
ciao from italy
violet
October 23rd, 2007 at 1:28 am
ciao
during the exibition on the wall it was a sentence
ERES LO QUE LEES you are what you are reading .
and material to to this was .. dog food …
question: what were people thinking when seeing dog ?
i m very hungry because people in the world is changing – have already changed – what will be our future ?
sorry for my english
violetta italy
October 23rd, 2007 at 4:10 am
wt the hell he has done with this dog??
does he know about “life”??
not only mankind can hv life, even dog!!!
if i saw tht “artist”, i think i’ll gonna kill him!!
October 23rd, 2007 at 6:07 am
[...] person is so wrong and the only reason I put it up here is on the malicious hope that karma will notice this person [...]
October 23rd, 2007 at 11:32 am
i would have knocked out this murderer and rescued the dog, he is not the only sick person here, every person that watched the ‘art’ is sick.
October 23rd, 2007 at 12:42 pm
How could that be classed as art? Yes, people have many ways of expressing how they feel but that is beyond ridiculous. How anyone could class that as art is just shocking. I’d like to know how that “artist” (Not much of one for starters) would feel if he was that dog. See if he’d still see it as art or animal abuse.
October 23rd, 2007 at 12:45 pm
Ärtist”, you are such a big loser.
And more…a sadist, a murderer.
Just for fun, for art, crazy !
October 23rd, 2007 at 1:02 pm
beautiful rendering of emotion and lost causes, comparisons? metaphors? art is nasty, modern life is not supposed to be pretty or kind, arrest this man or make him king……….silly humans tricks are for dogs, people die to make the creative accolades of western culture come true, demkocracy, let’s kill millions and have an art show in ten years to verify who hurts the most and how, kill a dog, eat a pig, wear a cow, neglect a race, squash a social class, ruin a child, get started, get smarter, go brighter, whine in your whine, shine in your time, be great for we will soon be GONE
October 23rd, 2007 at 1:39 pm
This is HORRIBLE. I can’t believe people can do things like that it’s just really wrong!
October 23rd, 2007 at 2:00 pm
i hope to pass u on my idea. sorry for my english.
if natividad was in whatever street and was not well
vargas absolutely might carry it to a doctor not in an art exibition.
that dog died without dignity and for
enterteinment of someone.
vargas says it was matter of people hypocrisy.
i think in 2007 all of us can see how many terrible things are moving around the world and we dont need vargas art.
moreover i would know why vargas had the permission to ‘exibit’ the dog.
thanks
ciao
violetta
October 23rd, 2007 at 7:07 pm
This is outrageous. I would hope that no one considers this art and I would like to see this person punished.
October 23rd, 2007 at 7:11 pm
This is horrible! How can you do such a thing to a poor helpless, sick dog? How could you watch him die like that, and how could anybody else watch him die? And what’s up with the dog food on the wall, and in the bowl out oof reach of the dog? You should have charges filed against you . You are worse than disgusting!
October 24th, 2007 at 1:44 am
This is an art. And the artist is brilliant.
Art brings out emotions, and this brought out emotion. Very strongly. I find the artist extreme but brilliant. He could of just made a video and filmed a bunch of poor people and use that as a display to preach out the message he wanted, but the chances of his message getting through to people with just a video would be low. There are commercials that show a bunch of dieing skinny kids and how many switch the channel with out care, how many would be convinced to help the starving after seeing a video? Chaining a dog and forbidding the help brought out the humane and compassionate emotions in a person, w/c is something that doesn’t show to the person begging in the streets. Bu when something is being displayed, you feel it. The compassion that you should show to the people who are struggling.
The dog is an example of the people that aren’t being helped. It’s because we don’t care and weare selfish. We can help something like that if we care… that’s the intention of the artist, to show the hypocricy in all of us. something like this would bring out all sorts of emotion, compassion and anger. Compassion for the dog and anger towards the artist. We are mad at him for allowing this dog to suffer, but we won’t get mad at our selves from not giving the poor kids food to eat and a chance at survival. Look at our hypocricy. It’s cruel what he did, but this was a good way to show how cruel we are not allowing some people to eat by caring only abou ourselves. A video, a painting wouldn’t bring as much emotion as this.
It’s good art because the message got through.
October 24th, 2007 at 9:15 am
You have to be inconsiderate and lacking compassion if you think that’s art. What it does show is HUMAN NATURE and specifically how EVIL HUMANS are. We KILL everything, including our own kind for whatever reasons we can conjure to justify those killings. And we are KILLING all life forms on this planet, which will eventually lead to our own deaths. The planet can live without HUMANS, but we cant live without it! If we destroyed or sanitized every microbe in and on our body, we would die. It took humans over 2000 yrs to figure out women had a voice, thoughts, and rights, just how many more years will it take for us to understand that other species/animals (we are part of that animal kingdom–and not above it–which is our ego’s) and lifeforms are absolutely impairative. We fight due to cultural differences, religious beliefs, over sports of all things, corporate takeovers/boardrooms, in our bedrooms with our so called loved ones, and worst of all, within ourselves. That is an act of cruelty, lack of compassion, absolutely the human ego at its best…people conducting these types of behaviors and lack of respect for life should themselves be treated the same–that would be ART.
October 24th, 2007 at 9:40 am
I don’t know whats worse, the fact that this guys called it art, or the fact that no one rescued that dog.
October 24th, 2007 at 1:05 pm
the two ones.
art can be a dog death ?
if yes vargas is right
if art is another thing… animals will no longer be as objects to exibit and vargas is wrong
but in nicaragua there are no laws about animals as for i know
animals would be free to live and die belonging their destiny and not in the name of ‘art’ of someone borderline in order to shock our mind.
there are other important events we cant deal in this world .
ciao
sorry for my english
v
October 24th, 2007 at 8:57 pm
[...] (ht: The Gin Blog) [...]
October 25th, 2007 at 12:27 am
Stop this kind of art. Starvation of animals has nothing to do with art! Of you are a man of art, chain yourself and stave to death, that’s when you have your real moment of fame!
October 25th, 2007 at 2:39 am
yes. stop.
adios natividad. un besito.
v
October 25th, 2007 at 4:01 am
This is sick! How can anyone abuse a living creature like this. It’s heartbreaking!!!
October 25th, 2007 at 4:38 am
most of the renouned photographs of all time are images of suffering. Holocaust, Burning Tibetan Monks, Starving thirdworld children. it just hasnt been expressed clearly what Guillermo Habacuc Vargas had done that was so wrong.
Guillermo Habacuc Vargas crossed a line that no human or artist should cross. taking the life of an other conscious being. this bastard of humanity should be charged and prosecuted.
Guillermo Habacuc Vargas had 2 children catch this dog. He paid the kids for this. He then chained the dog and used the dog as “art”. He told everyone not to feed this dog. The dog died in the gallery.
of course you had many people see this dog… and no one acted in freeing the dog. in that respect i will not sign the petition. Guillermo Habacuc Vargas put a mirror up to the masses and captured it well. willingness to express strong words but do nothing in the moment to prevent it. i think he proved an important point. how many of you actually had seen the dog? and did nothing. yet still signed the petition.
October 25th, 2007 at 5:40 am
They should chained the author of this and let him starved to death. That would be much greater art.
October 25th, 2007 at 12:21 pm
Sick F*CK!! hope the monster that done this has a similar brutal punishment, but with more pain over a longer time
October 25th, 2007 at 1:58 pm
Why in the F*CK didn’t anyone do something about this before the poor thing died??!! Doesn’t anyone over there have a clue? You could be god damn sure that if I had seen a dog in that condition I would have done something about it. That is just bullshit, and for him to represent his country for “Bienal Centroamericana Honduras 2008″ is just crap! Why do people in these South American countries think its so cool to torture animals the way they do? I saw something on cable a few weeks ago that made me absolutely sick… It was in Spain, they light the ends of the Bull’s horns on fire to drive the bull mad before performing the other bullshit on it for their bullfights. That is just plain TORTURE and these people need to be made aware that it is NOT acceptable.
This guy needs to rot in HELL and I can tell you if I ever meet him, I’m gonna kick the shit out of his ass, tie him up, hell, hang him up by his ball until they rot off and then feed him to a pack of wild hungry jungle dogs! What a mother f*cking waste of a human live this piece of shit is!
Most Sincerely,
Toni Musulin
October 25th, 2007 at 10:31 pm
According to one of the other sites listed on this blog, Vargas found the dog already tied up on a street corner, and brought it into the gallery. It died within a day. In other words, it was already very sick, and did not die because it was starved by Vargas.
The blogs and comments on this site actually only confirm his point, which is that we only care enough about the death of the dog to get indignant about it BECAUSE he brought it into the gallery. Otherwise, we would have let it die on the street just the same.
None of us after all are out on the street of Central America saving the lives of suffering animals, much less human beings.
Neither blogging about nor commenting on this work saves the lives of any creatures.
October 26th, 2007 at 12:25 am
ciao
if vargas would have saved the dog carrying it to a doctor there was no gossip
because
‘GOOD’ NEWS ARE NOT SHOCKING NEWS.
so to remember us to be solidal with animals and people he thought a good idea to let a dog dying in an art exibition..
mh mh
v
October 26th, 2007 at 5:31 am
I live in Dharamsala, India, where the people are kind, but often poor, and many street dogs die of disease, injury, or resulting starvation. It is unfortunate in these “third-world” societies that these sweet and loving animals sometimes become too sick and depressed to eat, and then starve to death. The locals here don’t know what to do about it- they can barely afford their own healthcare, and many of the people are sick and dying too! And animal aid societies are few and far between in countries that are only beginning to provide adequate social services for humans. Two months ago, my husband and I took one of these dogs off the street, and it only cost about $50 (and many long, sleepless nights) to take him from the brink of death by starvation and maggot-infested wounds to what he is today- the happy, wonderful, sweetheart that is curled up beside my chair right now. But I have never seen something as horrible as this “artist”! And Vincent, the doggy we rescued, was MUCH sicker than the poor animal that this horrible man has now killed for recreation. I am appalled. I spent three weeks FORCING Vincent to eat to stay alive, by using a syringe to put food directly down his throat. And everytime he would throw it up, we would start all over again. And it is sickening that this “artist” (a Costa Rican, no less, and I’ve spent alot of time in Costa Rica- it is a beautiful country that prides itself on its eco-diversity) and his patrons allowed this to happen. Today, in response to seeing this monstrosity of “art,” my husband and I went out and rescued another street doggy from certain death from mange and infection. We’ve seen her at the bus station, and knew that she needed medical treatment, so that is what we did- we went to the pharmacy and bought the necessary supplies and administered them ourselves. And you would not believe how many smiles and thanks we got from the locals who watched us help her.
I believe that it is important to spread happiness and peace, and to allow others to see us do good deeds. It improves our mood. It improves the mood of the bystanders. And it improves our world. Don’t let this horrible “artist” turn you into someone like him. Don’t wish awful experiences on him and the others who allowed this to happen. Sign the petition, yes. He and his supporters should know that there are moral and ethical people out there who disapprove! Hit him in the pocketbook and the ego, and make his “art” un-fashionable and worthless. And then use your outrage to make a positive difference in the lives of other animals and people of third-world nations. Fundraise, donate, or, if you are inclined, get out there and make a difference first-hand by setting up your OWN animal aid society in a third world country. That is what my husband and I have decided to do. We are beginning the planning processes of organizing an animal aid society here in Dharamsala to provide on-street medical care, catch-and-release spay and neuter services, a small dog shelter for sick and aggressive animals, and public information campaigns for the doggies of Dharamsala.
See the pictures of the Dharamsala doggies here: http://vincents-left-ear.blogspot.com/
In solidarity for our furry friends,
Eliza Mae Marlie
October 26th, 2007 at 10:41 am
to Eliza Mae Marlie
your behaviour is the difference between a kind of ‘artist’ and your humanity and compassion
good luck
violacolor
.)
October 26th, 2007 at 3:19 pm
Aside from this article I don’t know any of the facts, like how sick the dog was when it was found or whatever.
I just want to say that ven though is the dog was already very sick or even if he “would’ve died anyway” it still doesn’t satisfy to chain the dog up to leave it to die. (No matter in what condition it was)
I’m from Germany, frankly I don’t know Costa Rica much, so I can’t say what kind of relationship the people there have with dogs in general, but in Germany the dog is the man’s best friend, we care a lot about dogs (and other pets, too), and if we would find a dog to be too weak/sick/whatever to keep on living we would have it put down by a vet to make sure it doesn’t have to suffer any longer than it already did.
If you have a pet, you are responsible for it. You’re responsible for it’s health and for it’s feelings, you’ve to respect that animals are living beings who have feelings, too. And that’s that!
I haven’t seen a dog which looked more sad like on the last picture forever.
I am an artist myself, I’m drawing, and I can say one thing: This isn’t artistic in any way. It’s disgusting and sad. Who gave you, dear responsibles, the right to treat one of nature’s creations so bad?
To the on responsibles: I want to boxout your teeth, you personally disgust me.
October 27th, 2007 at 1:03 am
ciao
la mort de ce petit chien a cree les sentiments les plus differents. moi j ai pleure j etais choquee.
mais qu est c qu il ya au dela de ca ?
pourquoi veut on la mort de vargas lorsque le mond est plein de souffrance et mort ?
est il devenue ‘le mal’ le negatif’ a qui fair payer les dettes du monde?
je ne veux pas provoquer. ce sont des questions que je pose a moi meme aussi. et je ne trouve pas de reponses valides.
merci
v
October 27th, 2007 at 3:55 am
it s just cruel!! unbelieveble. we dont starf people to death just because it s art.
Not because it s a dog but because why. i can imagen you eat a dog, but you dont kill it for ‘fun’
Moyra
October 27th, 2007 at 10:31 am
I find this horribly disgusting. Why is abusing an animal okay, and try to pass off the excuse of “it was going to die anyway”? God forbid if you try to apply this logic to some starving, diseased child in Africa. That’d be okay, right? I mean, come on, it was going to die anyway.
This reminds me of the man in Europe who taped himself drowning a small kitten. I think him and this man from Costa Rica should be put through the same punishment and abuse they did the poor animals they killed — Maybe then they’d realize that this is not art, and is ABUSE to a breathing, living animal who has emotions of its own. Maybe then they’d change their point of view.
October 27th, 2007 at 11:12 am
mh
its difficult to me imagine to eat a dog or a cat etc. but i know this happens in many countries. ok.
ITS NOT NORMAL TO EXIBIT AN ‘ARTISTIC DEATH’ .. TO HAVE OUR ATTENTION ..
he got his target .
certainly not the one of natividad nor the one of millions people.
V
October 27th, 2007 at 11:35 am
Taking a step back and looking at it from a different perspective, the piece it seems has already changed something … Eliza Mae Marlie saved a dog ‘as a response’ to the piece. Would she had taken in a second dog if it weren’t for the outrage that she felt?
Perhaps others will react the same way, or form some sort of animal aid group in response.
One dog’s life to save a thousand …
October 27th, 2007 at 11:56 am
to hazeo
so do you think vargas is right ?
one life to save thousand…
if yes there will be no more animals on the street !
naaaa
if this theory is true why war doesnt produce peace ?
tks
v
October 27th, 2007 at 6:17 pm
lo del perro no es mas [que] la exhibicion del abandono y desinteres humano… bravo por habacuc, abucheo para la sociedad
([the death] of the dog is the laying bare of the human abandonment and lack of interest… bravo for habacuc, shame on society)
That comment from the Spanish-language blog linked on this page seems worth quoting. At least it offers a counterweight to the self-righteous sentiment of many readers who seem to know that they are on the opposite side of Vargas, when it seems to me that one possible understanding of the act of transplanting the dog so that it did not die on the street but in the gallery is that it is an accusation that we are all in a larger sense passive witnesses of human neglect and disinterest.
But as can be seen here, this does not prevent us from casting stones quite readily and easily.
October 27th, 2007 at 7:41 pm
jt
millions people million opinions.
i think its better stop writing about vargas as in that manner he has obtained what he wanted.
not our attention or compassion for animals but money and success.
v
October 28th, 2007 at 3:25 am
calls that art ….you sick f### you want putting down
October 28th, 2007 at 5:13 am
VARGAS ANSWER on line
..
“Hello everyone. My name is Guillermo Habacuc Vargas. I am 50 years old and an artist. Recently, I have been critisized for my work titled “Eres lo que lees”, which features a dog named Nativity. The purpose of the work was not to cause any type of infliction on the poor, innocent creature, but rather to illustrate a point. In my home city of San Jose, Costa Rica, tens of thousands of stray dogs starve and die of illness each year in the streets and no one pays them a second thought. Now, if you publicly display one of these starving creatures, such as the case with Nativity, it creates a backlash that brings out a big of hypocrisy in all of us. Nativity was a very sick creature and would have died in the streets anyway.”
.
http://www.vegnord.fr/viewtopic.php?p=37781
http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=21055191&blogID=319930414&indicate=1
http://www.inseparabileforum.comv
October 28th, 2007 at 6:02 am
ciao
I COPY AND PAST A VARGAS MSG ON A FRENCH SITE.
VARGAS SPACE IS CLOSED.
http://www.myspace.com/guillermovargas1957
.
Important message
The nasty messages and crude blog postings are getting way out of hand. I have even received some death threats which I do not appreciate. I had intended for my page to be a cultural exchange and a revelation of art, but it has turned out to be a nasty compilation of horrible remarks.
In addition, I have received a letter today from an authority representing the upcoming Bienal. She was concerned about the amount of publicity I have been receiving because of “Eres lo que lees”, and was questioning the the legitimacy of having me attend as a distinguished guest and representative.
I would like to apologize to everyone for the impact that my project had. I will no longer call it a piece of art out of respect to those I have insulted. It was wrong what I did, and I should have saved the animal instead of letting it die. Please accept my apology.
I was hoping that those who were the authors of the petitions against me would be kind enough to take their petitions down. I will never do this kind of art again.
Thank you
http://www.vegnord.fr/viewtopic.php?p=37781
http://animalrightsdiscussion.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=48623&sid=9bada1feead22f12ee2e0c97576e43e7
ciao
violacolor
.
October 29th, 2007 at 12:51 am
mmmh
i need a big pizza ’cause i am a little bad
October 29th, 2007 at 5:16 pm
[...] Of course, if you’re just feeling vengeful and want to see people hurt in the safety of the interwebs, you can always just pound the keyboard, pretending that the stick figure is Guillermo Habacuc Vargas. [...]
October 29th, 2007 at 8:46 pm
One of the beautiful things about being born a human and not an animal is the choice to use our built-in feelings, passions, and emotions to do good to our fellow man, the nature, and the animals of our Earth. Being human with a built-in brain, you can of course choose to be an animal instead. This is the first time in my human life I have ever considered that opportunity. So here it goes:
If I ever get the chance, mr. Vargas, I promise you in the most artistic way I will personally starve your little sorry ass to death. Hope to see you real soon!
October 30th, 2007 at 3:54 am
ciao
mh yes
..
to me is not so beautiful to be born human ’cause there are millions people who cant choice anything who are victims of another human…
what difference between me killing a dog and a dog killing a cat or other ?
i suppose .. the fact that animal kill to defense itself or to eat or to respect its space.
human kill in the name of freedom – culture – money – diamonds and so on
i have no answer because there is not ONE truth.
sorry for my english
ciao
v
October 30th, 2007 at 9:29 am
You SHOULD be criticized, you sick worthless bastard! You starved a fucking dog! This poor dog’s life will become your hell.
October 30th, 2007 at 9:42 am
I’m stunned…when i first heard about this i thought it must be a hoax…you are a sick man that deserves whatever bad things that happen to you.
October 30th, 2007 at 11:31 am
I COPY AND PAST AN INFO FROM GIORNALE.IT
EUROPEAN UNION REFUSE VARGAS EXIBITION IN THE FUTURE.
about 152.000 persons have signed but its necessary to go on.
pls translate with an on line translator. tks
sorry.
ciao
violacolor
COPIO INCOLLO DA IL GIORNALE.IT
martedì 30 ottobre 2007, 07:00
La Ue mette al bando il torturatore di cani
La Ue, intanto, ha deciso di mettere al bando l’arte omicida chiudendo le porte dei principali musei ad Habacuc. Il commissario Frattini, promotore dell’iniziativa, ha già iniziato le consultazioni con altri delegati per verificare in che modo si possa vietare al costaricano di «esternare» al di fuori dai confini del suo paese. E mentre i politici stanno lavorando in questo senso, la gente protesta sonoramente.
Siamo a quota 152mila. Le petizioni on line contro il sedicente artista Guillermo Habacuc Vargas, piovono da tutto il mondo e si moltiplicano. Ora anche nel nostro paese la gente si sta muovendo per stigmatizzare la sadica iniziativa «culturale» di Habacuc e impedire che l’autore possa replicarla in qualche altro museo compiacente.
….
ciao
v
October 30th, 2007 at 2:05 pm
This makes me wanna be an artist too! I would start with this Mr. Guillermo Habacuc Vargas and make him a piece of art in my gallery of horror and suffering! Perhaps I get to represent my country in big biennale’s!
October 30th, 2007 at 3:27 pm
SIGN PETITION . ITS RIGHT
SIGNER LA PETITION . C EST JUSTE
FIRMARE LA PETIZIONE E GIUSTO
FIRMAR LA PETICION ES CORRECTO
……
- Special Unit for Animal Protection and Rescue
- Humanitarian Association for Animal Protection
adnkronos 30 ott 2007
Queste organizzazioni stanno studiando il caso per presentare un ricorso davanti al tribunale locale.
…..
ces organizations vont etudier le cas pour le tribunal local
…..
estas autoridades estudiarán la materia para la corte local
…..
these authorities will study the matter for the local court
………………………………
ciao
v
October 30th, 2007 at 10:27 pm
It is wonderful for everyone to be so concerned about this dog now.
As the artist has been quoted as saying it is no surprise that any of you
are probably not out in the street currently looking for starving dogs,
nor saving them.
This act may in fact highlight the lack of funding that the animal welfare
bodies in Nicaragua have to deal with.
My response is one of horror too, at where art is going. For sure there may
be a starving human at the end of the wire next. BUT is this not what many
of our countries are doing anyway to less fortunate countries or peoples?
Arent all the meat eaters amongst us allowing the horrible conditions of
mass animal slaughter and meat manufacturing, and profit making, to go on?
Because of the few photos published there are some reactions to this artist
that propose violent endings for the artist. Why? Why not send out messages
of assistance to animal welfare groups instead and maybe even donate some
cash to them? Its so easy to bark orders and hatred at people when in fact
the response should be one of horror directed at governments to increase
awareness of, and funding for, the rights of animals.
By the way, in Australia in the last 10 years in one state alone, 25,000 plus
Koala ‘bears’ have died of unnatural causes such as dog attacks, car accidents
and starvation. They will probably end up either extinct or locked in cages.
When i was a kid you could see koalas around here n there. If we keep raping
our planet and thinking fast paced progress is the way forward for human kind
we will end up alone on this planet with a huge dose of guilt at the killing of
what wonderful species we could have shared it with.
$0
October 31st, 2007 at 8:39 am
I think Zero Dollars made the best statement by not only condamming the artist but also our society . It is true what he says – we are all like the artist and we are all like the visitors of the museum . While we are discussing this , thousands of animals on our planet are being mistreated , slaughtered or extinguished – and most of us couldn´t care less . How should we ? If we don´t even care wether children all over the world live a miserable live and many of them die before they even get to the age of 5 . They die of starvation , in wars , from abusement , neglection , sickness and slavery !
If we do not change thinking and action in the next few years , we will even manage to kill the whole planet – and then WE will be the DYING DOG on the chain – however – we really deserve it !
And I wish Mr.Guillermo “Habacuc” Vargas with all my heart that he will have a slow and cruel death !
October 31st, 2007 at 9:37 am
oh zero dollars. i agree.
what u say its true.
but especially natividad/vargas has caused a blog revolution. why?
maybe natividad had been a kind of truth we wouldnt know or see ? i dont know.
in this case petition will help animals.
no more speaking on vargas.
i have cats and adopt tigers in china. qhen possible i give money to animal associations.
ok. then ?
bin this case what can I do apart from the petition ?
i dont live in nicaragua and know many of them have to face how to survive.
can we really do something to help them
for example… ? ?
sorry for my english.
thanks
v
November 3rd, 2007 at 11:16 am
He has on the street a better life!
November 3rd, 2007 at 2:26 pm
If I would run in the man who calls himself an artist (whitch he is NOT without a doubt) I would ty him up and put him in a corner as an art object. This man has no hart!
The other thing that bothers me a lot, is that people paid money to see it, take pictures of it, and don’t even bother the fact that a living creature is near them and they don’t even try to feed it… That’s sick! Laughing, drinking and eating, while a poor helpless and depending animal is dying… If more people act like the idiot who invented this and called it art, what is happening to the world?
November 3rd, 2007 at 3:16 pm
I belive that Empathy will prove to be the most important aspect of humanity – if we want to evolve.
Empathy is REAL. It’s seeing what’s really there. Empathy is about caring.
So to make a context for people to turn that off…
To set up a scene for people to alienate themselves from a suffering helplessness creature in the same room, with nothing stopping them but this man’s say-so …?! …
That is not artistry, that is dangerous sickness.
Now, if the ‘artist’ was to be simply shot?
That would not only be a statement, it would be a smooth bow to the holiness of life.
November 4th, 2007 at 8:12 am
I have a new revolutionary idea for an art-project. We will chain mr. Guillermo to the wall, without food or water and watch him die slowly. Art!
Maybe we can “invite” some street dogs to the show who can pee on him, it would be an even better performance!
Get the cameras and the tv crews, call the papers and the sponsors, this would be huge!
November 4th, 2007 at 11:44 am
hehe
to me it wouldnt be huge
anyway ok. I understood …
I think people is changing and we have to do a step behind and re-start better than we have done till now
violacolor
November 5th, 2007 at 7:07 am
This is a disgrace!! It is sending out a message to already sick people that it is acceptable to abuse animals and have no regard for their lives. Art should be heart warming and stimulating, not stomache wrenching. I am ashamed to be a human being!
November 5th, 2007 at 12:13 pm
At first i could not believe this was true. That so called artist is such a sick nutter. I dont feel like wasting too many words on this loser. He and the ones cooperating with him are sick and need to be locked up or put down – simple as that. He had no right what he did to that dog.
November 5th, 2007 at 5:16 pm
Hasn’t it been proven that people who commit heinous acts on other humans first start out with animal cruelty? Do we have the worlds next famous serial killer on our hands? “dangerous sickness” indeed!
November 6th, 2007 at 2:14 am
we have to do a step back and realize which are the values of life .
if money . success – beauty – art and so on
we are wrong .
perhaps is the moment arrived to act better than before ?
ciao
v
November 6th, 2007 at 8:15 am
[...] By Ellee Animal lovers throughout the world are sickened and outraged at how Costa Rican artist, Guillermo Habacuc Vargas took a dog from the street and used it as an art exhibit, causing it to suffer and starve to death [...]
November 6th, 2007 at 10:25 am
I can’t believe the number of hits you have had on this story, it’s unbelievable, let’s hope some good comes of it. Do please keep me posted if you get the chance.
November 7th, 2007 at 5:24 am
This monster can’t be called a person even less an “artist”. What kind of artist makes a human being suffer so much into the death and then call it “art”?
I hope that this monster can’t exhibit nevermore anything that is in his opinion “art” and that he has the punishment he deserves.
November 7th, 2007 at 8:16 am
Call to action!
Write the Costa Rican Government to ban this animal killer!
http://www.casapres.go.cr/inicioContactenos.aspx
And also the “Art” gallery:
info@madc.ac.cr
codice@galeriacodice.com
Don’t sign online petitions, write the Costa Rican Government!
They must give us a reason why they prized this animal killer.
November 7th, 2007 at 9:18 am
I’m a grate lover of art myself, bud this?
This isn’t art. This is creepy ant totally sick!
I hope with all my heart this man gets his deserved punishment!
And also the art gallery and the people how sow it ant didn’t act!
Jour not an normal human being wan you let this crime happen!
The artist can’t help it he is Cleary a very sick man, you can!
Please singe in! and bi kind to all natures animals, jour one yourself !
November 8th, 2007 at 11:14 am
1- The dog did not die.
2- The petition will do nothing but to apease your conscience with a false send of doing something.
3- Go out and adopt a dog if you really care.
4- This is all a ploy by Habacuc to get famous, the dog was released after the exhibition. He died a week after while trying to eat thru a plastic garbage bag.
November 8th, 2007 at 6:29 pm
[...] feed this dog. The dog died in the gallery. He calls himself an artist. I call him an animal abuser.read more | digg [...]
November 8th, 2007 at 7:46 pm
can i have the stupid artist name?
November 9th, 2007 at 4:15 am
..
guillermo vargas – habacuc –
1 – explained the reason of the ‘exibition’
2 – he apologized later for the same one
3 – vargas site was closed and he wrote on
a French blog
4 – nicaragua – europe media & press & blog
are all wrong ?
5 – Marion Lampkin how can have different
infos about vargas ?
I don’t desire to provocate but only want how and why if possible…
________________
IMPORTANT MESSAGE
THE NASTY MESSAGES AND CRUDE BLOG POSTINGS ARE GETTING WAY OUT OF HAND. I HAVE EVEN RECEIVED SOME DEATH THREATS WHICH I DO NOT APPRECIATE. I HAD INTENDED FOR MY PAGE TO BE A CULTURAL EXCHANGE AND A REVELATION OF ART, BUT IT HAS TURNED OUT TO BE A NASTY COMPILATION OF HORRIBLE REMARKS.
IN ADDITION, I HAVE RECEIVED A LETTER TODAY FROM AN AUTHORITY REPRESENTING THE UPCOMING BIENAL. SHE WAS CONCERNED ABOUT THE AMOUNT OF PUBLICITY I HAVE BEEN RECEIVING BECAUSE OF “ERES LO QUE LEES”, AND WAS QUESTIONING THE THE LEGITIMACY OF HAVING ME ATTEND AS A DISTINGUISHED GUEST AND REPRESENTATIVE.
I WOULD LIKE TO APOLOGIZE TO EVERYONE FOR THE IMPACT THAT MY PROJECT HAD. I WILL NO LONGER CALL IT A PIECE OF ART OUT OF RESPECT TO THOSE I HAVE INSULTED. IT WAS WRONG WHAT I DID, AND I SHOULD HAVE SAVED THE ANIMAL INSTEAD OF LETTING IT DIE. PLEASE ACCEPT MY APOLOGY.
I WAS HOPING THAT THOSE WHO WERE THE AUTHORS OF THE PETITIONS AGAINST ME WOULD BE KIND ENOUGH TO TAKE THEIR PETITIONS DOWN. I WILL NEVER DO THIS KIND OF ART AGAIN.
THANK YOU
http://www.vegnord.fr/
http://jiobbe68.splinder.com/archive/2007-10
http://ea6gk.blogspot.com/2007/10/la-hipocresa-de-juanita-%20bermdez.html
animal law – Nicaragua
Pica pica Says: Octubre 25th, 2007 at 6:07 pm
Normas Jurídicas de Nicaragua
Rango: Decretos – Ley
CÓDIGO DE DEFENSA Y PROTECCIÓN DE ANIMALES
No. 688, Aprobado el 10 de Diciembre de 1940
Publicado en La Gaceta No.3 del 7 de Enero de 1941
EL PRESIDENTE DE LA REPÚBLICA,
En uso de sus facultades,
DECRETA
El siguiente
CÓDIGO DE DEFENSA Y PROTECCIÓN DE LOS ANIMALES
Artículo 1.- El Estado protege a todo ser irracional, capaz de prestar al hombre alguna utilidad, beneficio o esparcimiento; y en consecuencia, velará por medio de la Sociedad Protectora de Animales a fin de que no se les cause tortura, daño o muerte innecesaria.
Artículo 2.- Se aplicará las sanciones que establece la presente ley, a todo acto, omisión o negligencia que motive o dé ocasión a sufrimiento, o muerte injustificada de cualquier animal, útil e inofensivo, sin perjuicio de las responsabilidades penales o civiles que establecen nuestras leyes.
…
———————————————
thanks
violacolor
November 9th, 2007 at 4:25 am
…
i adopt tigers in china every year and have animals in my house. when possible i give money to animal associations.
this is not the problem.
the problem is to kmow the truth about animal abuse.
i think it would be correct to write not only our opinion but what s really is – happened – or not
tks
v
November 9th, 2007 at 4:32 am
http://www.vegnord.fr/viewtopic.php?p=37781
November 9th, 2007 at 6:06 am
…
my answer to marion has been c ensured
ok
truth is only a personal opinion.
….
v
November 9th, 2007 at 6:11 am
pls
somebody can tell me how messages seems to be cancelled and 5 minutes later they appear again… ?
that has happened also last week.
where and how am i wrong in posting mesg ?
thanks a lot
v
November 9th, 2007 at 11:01 am
I FOUND THIS NEWS AND DONT WANT CHANGE SUBJECT BUT REMAIN ABOUT ANIMAL ABUSE
LIFE/DEATH EVERYWHERE
ALL OVER THE WORLD
Description/History:
Each year, at least 320,000 primates, dogs, pigs, goats, sheep, rabbits, cats, and other animals are hurt and killed by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) in experiments that rank among the most painful conducted in this country.
Because these figures don’t include experiments that were contracted out to non-governmental laboratories or the many sheep, goats, and pigs often shot in wound experiments, the total number of animal victims is actually much higher. The cost to taxpayers for these military experiments is estimated to be in excess of $100 million annually.
Under the banner of defense use, animals are routinely poisened, burned, tortured, shot, mutilated, blown up and injected with diseases they would not normally contract.
Animals have been used to test bullet trajectories when blocks of gel are better, as they allow military weapons experts to permanently freeze the bullet trail, something that doesn’t happen with a sheep or dog; they’ve even been put in slings and shot so that medics could practice cutting away dying tissue, when there are far superior ways to train medics.
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/stop-the-us-militarys-war-on-animals.html
ciao
v
November 9th, 2007 at 12:28 pm
I have to say this is crule, could never be enough for what this man has done, Maybe we should tie him up and starve
Him, how could someone allow this or think it is art?
November 9th, 2007 at 1:26 pm
Very sad that any human being would consider this art.
November 9th, 2007 at 4:54 pm
I want to see him tied up and starved.
Not really, but I don’t get the whole point of him tying up the dog and having people watch it die needlessly.
What is wrong with the world today? When did people become so unashamedly disregardful of other life? This is why the world is ending!!!
November 9th, 2007 at 8:19 pm
I thought I’m pacifist. Till this day. I would kill that son of a bitch.
November 9th, 2007 at 10:00 pm
I am an artist but I can not call this as an art. This is terrible. What will by next ?
November 10th, 2007 at 1:12 am
[...] http://www.theginblog.com/2007/10/artist-chains-up-dog-until-it-dies-is-this-art-or-animal-abuse/ [...]
November 10th, 2007 at 1:22 am
mh ..
to be concerned – to know – to read – those kind of news on animals abuse and so on will make our brain ‘used’ and later whatever news will be ‘normally’ ones ?
will we become really better ? or not ?
death/life
god/devil
the infinity history
?
tks
b
November 10th, 2007 at 10:58 am
every living creature has the right to LIFE instead of chaining the dog up and leaving it to die he should have saved its life. THAT would have been true beautiful art. But instead this rotting peice of metaphorical shit left the poor animal to die. He should be taken out and SHOT. no questions asked.
November 10th, 2007 at 1:22 pm
Let’s do the same to him! That is not an art it’s cruelty! If that would be possible I would kill that motherfucker!!!!!!!!!
November 10th, 2007 at 5:49 pm
Sick and wrong. Utterly sick and wrong.
November 10th, 2007 at 10:36 pm
This equals killing an innocent child! And he is rewarded for it??? Human is really the sickest being on earth!
November 10th, 2007 at 10:54 pm
What a horrible thing to do. The “artist” and the people who did not stop this needless suffering should be ashamed of themselves. I am sickened.
November 11th, 2007 at 2:24 am
hope you and all of idiots who consider this “art” will die the same way, you stupid asshole!
November 11th, 2007 at 3:55 am
.
how many vargas in the world?
how many things we dont know yet ?
the problem is WHAT ‘HUMAN BEING’ mean ?
ciao
v
November 11th, 2007 at 7:26 am
I think he is not artist
he is monster,bandit,sadist and barbarian.
November 11th, 2007 at 7:29 am
bandits are everwhere
November 11th, 2007 at 9:33 am
TRUE OE NOT ?
NOTHING SURE.
TO ME VARGAS MATCHED HIS PERSONAL TARGET.
http://blog.panorama.it/culturaesocieta/2007/11/09/il-cane-lasciato-morire-di-fame-e-unopera-fatta-ad-arte/
http://attivissimo.blogspot.com/2007/11/antibufala-cane-lasciato-morire-per.html
ciao
v
November 11th, 2007 at 1:25 pm
Terrible!
November 11th, 2007 at 2:19 pm
it’s not art, it’s a murder. if he killed dog in museum so in future for “art” “artists” would kill people for atrifice. he should be punished, it’s not on!
punish him ! ! !
November 11th, 2007 at 10:55 pm
how could all those people just stand around and do nothing at the exibit? They are just as sick as him. They are supporting his sick crule act and acnologing it as art by not doing anything and paying to be there.
November 12th, 2007 at 12:08 am
Maybe he should do this to himself, everyone could kill a dog, that’s not art, kill yoursel Vargas, that will be art. One crazy person I could understand but there was more people there and they voted him the best artist in the country and that is sad. I feel sorry for the country which the best artist is nothing but a dog killer.
November 12th, 2007 at 11:10 am
This man is disguisting.
November 12th, 2007 at 1:23 pm
Castreren met een roestige vork en daarna uithongeren deze zieke geest.
November 12th, 2007 at 2:56 pm
this man is very sick… and better for him if I won’t meet them on the street… and one more for people which were there- you are stupid and damn bastards… if you have some courage please write to me: gmyru86@gmail.com
poor dog…
November 12th, 2007 at 4:03 pm
I don’t agree with what this artist has done. It was horrible to have let the dog died when many people could have saved it. However horrible his art was, it is still an art. It caused people to discuss and debate…and I think this is what art is about.
November 12th, 2007 at 4:08 pm
..And who is this artist who can “order” people not to feed the poor dog? This makes me think why is it so important for people in our society to follow “orders”/”policeis”. If there was one person in the gallery had a kind enough heart to disobey the cruel order, the dog could have been saved and the art piece would turn out to be totally different…
November 12th, 2007 at 9:01 pm
this is cruel and it should not be considered ART…davinci made art…this is stupidity and animal abuse. people shouldnt just stand around and do nothing. its sick and wrong. LEAVE THE ANIMALS ALONE
November 13th, 2007 at 8:04 am
I agree with the above comment…How can people just walk past this poor dog and ignore the cruelty?? It’s not art!! It’s just plain wrong!
November 13th, 2007 at 9:18 am
stop stop stop speaking about vargas
he got his target ! do not follow his game !
we have to avoid other vargas will act the same way
we just have to realize what human being mean .
..
ciao
violacolor
November 13th, 2007 at 12:16 pm
Prudence, it is not “Art”, it is cruelty, plain and simple. It is just wanton neglect of an animal that had no one else to rely on, no one to feed it and so this waste of fresh air calls it art ! What a sad, warped messed up person this “vargas” is. Disgraceful, the people seeing it and the gallery for displaying it. Shame on all of you.
November 13th, 2007 at 1:33 pm
How could he go home and sleep at night..knowing he’d tied an already maltreated and neglected dog up, to starve..whilst placing dog-food out of reach..it is beyond sickening.
This act bears no resemblance to art..it’s a contrived media stunt to gain publicity and notoriety..and all for the vain glorification of his own ego.
The society that awards this so-called ‘artist’ a prize..(and I understand he won a prize for this)..should hang their heads in shame..anyone who thinks this cold-hearted act is something to be celebrated or something to admire..is morally bankrupt in my opinion.
November 13th, 2007 at 6:41 pm
Don’t confuse or even mention art here. That was just bloody awful. However don’t get into the “kill him” for revenge mode or do the same to him/her. That puts us all into the same mentality. Killing is never justified- ever.
Lets make sure this stuff NEVER happens again in the name of art or anything else for that matter.
For once I am speechless. It’s upset me very very much.
So please, cut the violent talk out.the baldchemist.
November 14th, 2007 at 12:31 am
[...] sau ca instalatia lui Guillermo Habacuc Vargas nu a fost arta. Sunt doua lucruri diferite, iar oamenii care au protestat fata de gestul artistului le-au [...]
November 14th, 2007 at 2:26 am
stop stop stop speaking about vargas
he got his target ! do not follow his game !
we have to avoid other vargas will act the same way
we just have to realize what human being mean .
..
ciao
violacolor
November 14th, 2007 at 4:29 am
Are you KIDDING me, Constabel? May I just assert that there is no way to justify torture and cruelty to living creatures? When we get into justifying our more horrific thoughts and actions (rather than accepting they are wrong and changing them), that’s how we get things like Guantanamo Bay and Nazi Germany…oh, my stars.
I’m normally against “eye for an eye,” but this guy sounds awful…I think it’s been said, but perhaps the “artist” should be chained to a wall until he starves…that’s unthinkable…but so is what he did.
Aaah, this whole story is just awful.
November 14th, 2007 at 1:34 pm
This man Will Be Punished By thee Man From Galilee.God’s Gonna Cut Him Down,and I pitty him.As for the Beautiful Innocent animals he is abusing and exploiting My heart has never stopped bleeding for them.This man is going to be judged by GOD and he has no idea whats in store for him.I hope God Forgives him cuz Hell Must be Eternally unforgiving.I Absolutely Hate Abuse in all it’s ugly forms.This Man should go to prison for the rest of his life.
November 15th, 2007 at 3:35 am
[...] kunstenaar Guillermo Habacuc Vargas, een straathond, touw en een kunstatelier. Vervolgens laat je de hond uithongeren tot hij dood gaat en noemt het vervolgens kunst. Onbegrijpelijk dat de bezoekers van het atelier [...]
November 15th, 2007 at 11:42 am
Absolutely horrible. Why no one did anything to help the poor dog is beyond me. I just don’t understand people at all sometimes. My heart aches for the poor little guy.
November 15th, 2007 at 12:03 pm
Why has this man done anything wrong? If anything he revealed the ugly nature of the bystander. Constantly unwilling to ever raise there hand in defense of any standards or principles. The artist isn’t to blame, but the viewers of this dog are.
November 15th, 2007 at 1:57 pm
I disagree with the previous post. Both the artist and the bystanders are to blame. This problem is quite similar to that of the Nazis. The leadership gave the orders and the members followed. Both are to blame.
November 15th, 2007 at 2:40 pm
In answer to your question ‘asdf’..
I would say he is culpable..he exploited a defenceless animal in order to win a prize. I very much doubt that his motive was to reveal the ‘ugly nature of the bystander’, certainly from what I’ve read, he has never proclaimed it as such.
What he did, was an abuse of power plain and simple..if he had any kind of point to make..he could have made it, in any number of creative..imaginative ways..and not at the expense of this poor dog.
There is no justification, for that form of cruelty.
November 15th, 2007 at 2:46 pm
Unfortunately the academy that hosts Bienarte 2008 has posted a disclaimer saying that the petition will not affect their consideration of Guillermo Vargas Habacuc.
So best is to appeal to those that help fund the event.
Have your readers contact the dutch organization that funds the Bienarte 2008 event:
HIVOS (Humanistisch Instituut voor Ontwikkelingssamenwerking)
at info@hivos.nl
Tell them to stop supporting events that showcase artists that kill/hurt animals for art’s sake.
In the meantime, I suggest that all artists MAKE art about what they would like Guillermo Vargas Habacuc to suffer, like this one did in our home town:
http://www.vazalt.com/2007_Habacuc_eng.htm
Thank you for exposing this pathetic excuse of a so called “artist”.
November 16th, 2007 at 1:30 am
Let us call it what this really is ? This is NO Art it is TORTURE of an innocent life by NOT an artist but a TERRORISTS One who abuses the innocent and posts them on images and tv and gets a stir around it and calls it what it is NOT
SATAN loves UPSIDE down thinking and until we start using WORDS correctly WE are in for deep trouble THIS IS NOT ART it is TORTURE OF INNOCENT LIFE!!!!!DO NOT BE FOOLED
November 16th, 2007 at 5:43 am
In the United states on average per year the number of animals slaughtered for food is 9,906 million. In 1970, over 600,000 square kilometers (232,000 square miles) of Amazon rain forest as in wildlife habitat has been destroyed.Every two hours a healthy animal is destroyed by animal welfare – how long did it take you to read this article and submit a comment on this board? How many interventions in to animals cruelty could you have made in this time, but didn’t?
With our leather shoes, Mcdonalds drive through, day at the dog tracks and the carbon omissions from our cars and our computers,We as human beings are guilty, we are neglectful, we are cruel to animals and to each other- the only difference between us and Vargas is he is honest about this and aware of his own potential as a human being to allow, to cause and to condone suffering.
You are what you read- artists are not superheros they are human beings, they are not obligated to save the world anymore than any other human being is, Vargas merely reflects the world we re living in:
we are Vargas – welcome to the human race.
November 16th, 2007 at 8:50 am
This is shocking, I can’t believe this is true, how can someone be so cruel & the fact that he spent money to have the dog captured when he could have spent money to feed the poor thing or have it medically treated. The fact that people came to view it as art & did nothing appalls me even more. If I went to an art exhibit and saw this I would cause a riot, take the dog to the nearest animal hospital & report the lot of them.
November 16th, 2007 at 12:10 pm
I can’t believe anyone’s suprised by this. I thought it was common knowledge that the vast majority of humans could give two shits less about any random animal, and if they find away to prosper from it? of course they’ll hurt and exploit it.
Humans are scum. I’ve already come to terms, I’m not shocked by this, just sickened.
November 16th, 2007 at 5:40 pm
Absolutely disgusting. The man should be subject to the exact same death as the poor dog. I wonder how ‘arty’ he’ll find that.
Sickening.
November 16th, 2007 at 7:43 pm
Candida Says: “we are cruel to animals and to each other- the only difference between us and Vargas is he is honest about this and aware of his own potential as a human being to allow, to cause and to condone suffering.”
I say: “GARBAGE”. We are all capable of countless unspeakable acts. We are all capable of looking the other way. I would not. I could not. I have nursed ill animals back to health, I have saved beings from the brink of death. most would not condone Vargus’ cruel play. For every human capable of evil there are 10 more who are capable of good. Vargus is not an artist or a philosppher. He is an evil hack with nothing to say. Karma will treat this scum as he deserves.
November 16th, 2007 at 7:46 pm
This really isn’t ‘Art’ in any shape or form IMO. It’s just despicable work. Pain is not art, art is something of beauty and sure emotion but never physical pain.
Lock em up.
-Alex
November 17th, 2007 at 2:31 am
Art is created by choice. The participants should be willing. The dog was given no choice. He was victimized by some psuedo-intelectual artist with no concern for the spirit of life. It was said by Joyce that the artist creates the conscienceness of our race. I hope this act will torture his conscience as he has tortured this poor animal. Maybe a stronger statement would have been to starve himself to death.
I dissagree with Candida’s(495)impersonal point of view. Exploiting the death of another creature intentionally is not justification for rubbing the inhumanity of man in anyones’ face. Millions of people are starving and being slaughtered as we speak. Should we tie one to a stake and let them starve to death to make an artistic statement? I think not.
November 17th, 2007 at 4:45 am
[...] jullie hulp nodig! Onderteken en verspreid de petitie! Redactie Hart voor Dieren Mijn mening: Een hond uithongeren is geen kunst, een mafkees stoppen [...]
November 17th, 2007 at 6:21 am
A desperate “artist” who lacks talent! This is Disgusting !! I also think that all the people who went there and let it happen are accomplices for letting it happen ! Some action is needed so people like him know that this kind of thing will not be tolerated !
November 17th, 2007 at 6:27 am
Sick. All I can say.
November 17th, 2007 at 2:34 pm
In response to cadidas495… there is a huge difference between a stray dog dying of starvation in a mal-nurished and bad socio economic ridden environment in San Jose.. and paying innocent children to capture a helpless starving animal, domesticated animal i might add (much different then cows who are bred for slaughter, which is a whole other issue on its own), and have it tied up and left to die like a prisoner. Art should embellish the soul, not torture it.
November 18th, 2007 at 11:09 am
I was apalled to read this. It is disgusting. No more words are needed.
November 19th, 2007 at 10:08 am
There is a difference between leaving a stray animal to roam and potentially starve and catching a stray animal and giving it no possible option but to starve to death. The first is leaving the dog as nature intended to fend for itself, it is not kind but it is not implicitly cruel, at least not at the hands of humans.
The second option is abhorrent; to take an animal, tie it up and watch it die slowly and painfully is disgusting. I make no judgement as to whether people think of it as art or not, I am merely pointing out that cruelty on this scale should not be allowed for any reason.
If someone were to do the same to a homeless person, in order to increase awareness over the plight of those with no fixed abode then we would be looking at a murder case and there would be little question over whether or not it was cruel.
November 19th, 2007 at 12:01 pm
this is absolutely disgusting. i hope he chains himself up next. he deserves to die if he thinks it art to forcefully cause another living creature to die.
November 19th, 2007 at 1:38 pm
Art???
Leaving an animal starve to death its art???
Supose i what to be an artist.. can i do to Mr “Animal” Vargas the same that he do with that dog???
Maybe people need to think more about the actions that they do..
We are all animals
November 19th, 2007 at 4:18 pm
Heartless, Guttless, Tasteless and most definitely Artless.
November 20th, 2007 at 3:17 am
EJ makes a civil and true point. I can’t even write a coherent sentence as I’ve read this so I’ll just say – this “artist” needs to die in a fire.
November 20th, 2007 at 1:12 pm
This man obviously does not understand what it is to be a great artist, or even an artist at all. You do not cause harm to living creatures to show the plight of these creatures.
This artist has not respected natural laws nor the principles of artistry. I doubt he will get respect from other artists that he so desperately wants because no artist would ever believe that what he did was artistry. It was inhumane and barbaric. He should be charged with animal abuse.
Shame on him and shame on those who witnessed this.
I would invite this man to do such an exhibit in North America or Europe, he would not get away such exploits. Instead he is a coward and will only do it in countries where he could do this kind of exhibit.
So if we can’t stop him from doing exhibits in those countries, lets ask him to come to metropolitan cities so we can put him behind bars and then try a case to the supreme court and deplete his resources and ruin his reputation.
Please spread the word.
November 20th, 2007 at 4:16 pm
I’d like to chain that c*nt to the wall,see how he likes it, aart my arse!
November 21st, 2007 at 4:00 pm
What this guy did was disgusting, but I can sort of understand what he was going for (not that he should have been allowed to do it by any stretch of the imagination, as its definitely cruelty to animals).
Each day, these people walk by starving animals in the street, and they do nothing. Suddenly it becomes wrong because its in a gallery? No, it was wrong all along. What I don’t understand is why the people who attended the exhibition, or the staff of the gallery, or anyone would *allow* this to go on, regardless. Surely the guy wasn’t watching this dog 24/7. SOMEONE could have fed this dog, yet no one took the initiative. It says something about society when we are content to walk by a scene like this, register our disgust, but not do anything about it.
November 21st, 2007 at 4:31 pm
This is just sick … Stop already!!!
November 21st, 2007 at 8:33 pm
fwck him..thats all I can say.
November 22nd, 2007 at 6:21 am
this is discusting and outragous speaking as a artist myself this has no place in the art world at all. The horrible person who did this wants locking up and the key throughing away.
November 22nd, 2007 at 11:48 am
I believe this man is sick and he should be punished, I would like to do the same exact thing he did to the dog to him…
“Do to others what you would like them to do to you”… or suffer the consecuences…-KARMA-, sooner or later he will pay, he will run but wont be able to hide and he will burn in his own hell.
And that is all I got to say about that…
November 22nd, 2007 at 2:44 pm
Firstly I have to ask if this is one of those hoaxes like the one about using live dogs as bait for shark fishing or the Bonsai Kittens. Assuming that this isn’t a hoax I have to wonder at the local law. Is this illegal locally? I’m not saying “is this wrong” as we all agree on that one, but what I am getting at is “will this skeezy chump get his just punishment for this”?
Live life morally. If you see this in future do whatever it takes to put right the wrong. Feed the dog, set it free, whatever it takes. Too late for this dog, but the next one it might not be.
November 22nd, 2007 at 6:29 pm
what happened with that sick bastard!!!!????
November 24th, 2007 at 10:56 am
wtf….. there is a line between art and cruelty.
this is cruelty. what was the purpose and his idea???
there is a peice of art around that has an already deceased dog in half…. but he didnt kill the dog in the gallery.
i do not agree with this at all… but my curiosity is wondering his intension through this ‘art’….. there must have been one or the gallery wouldnt have shown the animal…. what are the laws around this type of thing also…….
what a sick sick man……
November 24th, 2007 at 2:31 pm
idiot.
the same thing should happend to him!!
November 25th, 2007 at 11:17 am
So why did nobody do something about the dog, for crying out loud??!!! If I had been to such an exhibition, I would have untied the dog myself and taken him away after kicking the artist in the behind and tying him there to take the dog’s place!! I cannot stand back and watch any animal being ill treated. It’s no use airing these things when it is all over – I keep saying that to everyone, and I’m sure many of you here must be thinking the same thing too. DO sommething while the animal is being ill treated – DO NOT wait till it is dead. Surely there must have been some animal lovers who visited the exhibition and saw what was going on. Why was nothing done?? I will definitely sign the petition. How such a person can be invited to represent his country beats me.
November 25th, 2007 at 12:52 pm
.
to me and as i know vargas will be at 2008 exibition . no petition has been accepted.
he got his target and we might no more speak about him.
is the fact true (?)
in any case if yes he is absolutely wrong.
the problem is moreover the different death/life meaning .
ciao
v
November 26th, 2007 at 12:28 pm
i don’t really understand how this is art whatsoever… what was this even supposed to represent?? this it totally f*cked. obviously it’s abuse, and nothing like art.
November 27th, 2007 at 4:49 am
.
i think vargas is a closed affair.
perhaps nothing true.
animals and humans are dying all over the world owing to several reasons.
we have to avoid to ‘produce’ in our society other vargas.
it s no question of art or intelligence.
only money.
stop it.
ciao
v
November 27th, 2007 at 4:00 pm
F*cking disgusting VILE!!!
November 28th, 2007 at 11:38 am
I am really impressed how people can be devoided any feelings and how terrible things they can do. Really I congratulate the author of this idea and I will pray for the same life for him- or maybe i have better idea, more modern- let’s try our stupid ideas on ourselves. on the next show I would like to wait the starvation of the man who killed the dog and is proud of himself coz of that. You are extremaly stupid man, I worry if there is more so crazy people on this world as you.
November 29th, 2007 at 11:46 am
THIS IS A QUOTE FROM A COMMENT ABOVE:
MY REACTION IN CAPS:
“I don’t think you can impose your personal emotional point of view on a situation of a vastly different cultural context.YES YOU CAN. VIOLENCE IS VIOLENCE. IF YOU DO NOT SEE THAT, RE-EDUCATION IS NECESSARY, AND LAWS TO PROTECT THE VICTIMS. I mean, a pick axe to his face? murder? REALLY? do you have that reaction when you see a dead pigeon lying in the street? YES, SADNESS THAT ONE MORE ANIMAL IS ABUSED. do you feel like murdering the children of whoever drove over the poor poor pigeon?OF COURSE NOT! IF THEY DID IT INTENTIONALLY THEY NEED TO
BE FINED AND REQUIRED TO ATTEND CLASSES. me neither. because it’s just a dirty pigeon, not anything really important.THAT IS A STATMENT MADE BY SOMEONE WHOSE HEART IS CLOSED. YOU LIKE COMPASSION. THIS CAN BE FIXED.
and in most south american cities, stray dogs are nothing more than a dirty nuisance.” JUST LIKE STREET CHILDREN.
THIS IS A TRAGEDY OF INCREDIBLE, UNBELIEVABLE PROPORTIONS!
PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE THIS HAVE TO HAVE BEEN TORTURED IN SOME WAY TO DISASSOCIATE, AND/OR HAVE MENTAL EMOTIONAL IMBALANCE. WE ARE ALL RELATED – HUMANS, ANIMALS, PLANTS,
OUR EARTH. THAT CONSCIOUSNESS IS BECOMING STRONGER IN OUR WORLD. VISIT GLOBAL PEACE GLOBAL HEALING. CONSIDER YOUR OPINION IS WRONG. ASK FOR THE TRUTH. YOUR LIFE WILL BE HEALED WHEN YOU ARE INCLUSIVE AND YOUR HEART IS OPEN TO SUFFERING. SEE THE FILMS FAVELA RISING, WARRIOR OF THE LIGHT,WATER, WAR DANCE+.
November 29th, 2007 at 10:21 pm
why not to tie this motherf*er in a corner and let him die starved?
November 30th, 2007 at 2:28 pm
>> sakanta
i appreciate your comment
v
December 3rd, 2007 at 6:09 pm
Holy **** this guy needs to be starved for a few days then beat slowly to death over a few more. Anyone who could do this to a living creature deserves no better. Any burnt out hippy can do anything and call it art this guy is a piece of sh*t who deserves nothing better then a foot up his ass.
December 6th, 2007 at 8:52 am
. stop spend time about vargas. he got his target. we have to avoid other vargas can do the same ‘comedy’.
too difficult understand the life way and death/life meaning of another country.
so we all we might do what in our possibilities to help people or animals crossing our life and forget vargas and friends.
ciao
violacolor
December 6th, 2007 at 10:55 am
It is such a shame that people are furious with this type of abuse, but let it continue to happen all over the world by ignoring it. The artist should be held accountable for his actions, but look at the response he has received for his ‘ART’. 54 pages of comments, god knows how many hits and we are morbidly fascinated by this atrocious act of a dumb animal.
Don’t just speak – ACT.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:43 pm
[...] interesting art – Today, 20:43 Is This Art? Or Animal Abuse? Animal And Dog Lovers Be Warned… | The GinBlog | Funny Pics &… [...]
December 8th, 2007 at 3:02 am
[...] piensan responder a la oferta de los 30 000 dolores que Ecoanarkia le ofrece a quien logre que este boludo se parezca, lo más pronto posible, al perro que mató. [...]
December 10th, 2007 at 3:18 am
.. 30.000 $ to whom ?
December 15th, 2007 at 7:07 am
My work deals ultimately with power and this typifies the extent of human power over the weak. It is blatantly cruel and serves as example of no one stepping over a bourgeois boundary set in place for frivolous gain. It made no point other than multiple people sliding into voyeur’s place for a time when action was called. This work culls an elite evil. This artist is suppose to represent Honduran work; and if it were my country my shame could be not much greater than it is now, that a human is capable of such levels of neglect where the outcome suffers the least of which is a poor philosophical debate which can hardly be made for it.
December 16th, 2007 at 8:41 am
i m really surprised that blog s people is still talking about it.
i dont know why – there are many other bad things happening in the world.
vargas will be at the 2008 expo as the academy didnt accept any petition.
…….
ciao
v
December 18th, 2007 at 12:37 am
It is a well know fact that all serial killers often began by killing and torturing animals. AND no, we should not stop talking about this, blogging about this, until VARGAS, has no gallery representation.
To say there is other suffering in the world…. yes there is, and it is the duty of a responsible citizen that lives in society to speak out against injustice WHEREVER it may lay…
This issue goes beyond the dog…. this sick type of art began with Damien Hirst, who cut in half a mother cow and her calf, and stabilized them, and now they are shown in the tate museum in London…. that was art? AND he won the turner prize for it… Turner must be turning over in his grave… his art was about LIGHT…. not dark and evil…
The real problem is with the so-called art experts, the museum curators, critics who think that they can dictate to the world what art is. There lack of creative ability, their lack of vision, there andy warholesque obsession with either creating or following a tread has led us to museum’s full of contemporary garbage. There are GREAT young artists out there who get NO space because they will not cross the line into the unspeakable….MURDER in the name of art.
It is not because one has a degree in art history, that they can tell US what art is. They have their noses stuck in their books and up their other extremity. So much so that they forget what the artist really wanted us to SEE….. they never step back for perspective….
So….Vargas is the culmination of a sick art society, of snobby pseudo-intellectuals, and a complacent world who thinks they can change nothing. For the record I hold 3 university degrees and I deplore the attitude of others with the same type of education who feel they are superior to others. Often their degrees have brought them nothing more than more ignorance about the world.
We can change things… SPEAK out and do not let this issue die until it is dealt with…. and SPEAK out against other blasphemies, other outrages when you are disgusted…. only then can we feel the winds of change
December 18th, 2007 at 11:55 am
yes ondine.
i agree on the fact that natividad died in the name of ‘vargas art’ and it had been a victime of this affair.
ok.
i agree about the fact that vargas is responsible but there are no elements to proof that . it seems he or his childs gave food when exibition was off in the evening.
people said thousand and thousand versions of the fact.
the academy disregarded all petitions.
so. what can we really do against vargas in honduras ?
hawe u the power to do it ?
if yes ok but when i wrote stop to speak on him i meant that we only match vargas target. money glamour and so on.
.)
tks fow your comment.
ciao
v
December 21st, 2007 at 1:18 pm
I guess Joseph Mengele was an artist as well?
If Vargas tried this in Canada, where I live, he would have been charged with cruelty.
December 24th, 2007 at 9:23 pm
[...] though some people regard dogs as being less important than humans, it doesn’t mean that they can sometimes be better friends than we [...]
December 25th, 2007 at 12:08 am
[...] though some people regard dogs as being less important than humans, it doesn’t mean that they can sometimes be better friends than we [...]
December 29th, 2007 at 4:04 pm
[...] managed to take something usually beautiful (art) and do something horrible with it (kill a dog). No, seriously. In summation, he hired a couple kids to chase down a starving dog and bring it back to him so he [...]
December 30th, 2007 at 10:44 am
The whole Vargas incident was a hoax.
December 31st, 2007 at 10:12 am
if art is to imitate life, what does that say about us? have we lost love and compassion. why is it that in some parts of the world this can be accepted as art and in others we’re (like myself) appalled to the point of sickening. if we can have moritorium for global warming; why not a moritorium on violence to the helpless; especially those who cannot not use their own voice to scream to the rooftops that this is JUST WRONG….may God in his goodness accept this poor loving creature.
January 6th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
HORRIBLE !
January 7th, 2008 at 7:42 am
Vargas he’s a sick MoFo – How can people possibly walk past this poor animal and ignore it’s plight..it’s so, so wrong and Vargas and the others involved need to be punished, as does anyone who inflicts cruelty on the innocent, helpless animals of this world. How was this possibly allowed??
January 9th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
The following is a translation of a spanish statement made by the gallery that exhibited the dog.
According to this, the dog was fed, and kept only 3 days before escaping the night watchman.
An internal inquiry by the Costa Rican body that is looking to promoted the artist this year, also concluded that this is the truth.
Babel Fish Translation
In English:
EXPLANATION OF GALERIA CODICEManagua, 19 of October Gallery Codex from its creation in 1991, has promoted the Central American, but specially the Nicaraguans visual arts, as much in the national level, like in regional and the international. In Codex they have exposed great Central American teachers, as well as consolidated and emergent artists. The contemporary languages of the universal art also have had space in Codex, reason why periodically it welcomes samples of conceptual art. With that spirit, Thursday 16 of August just last No.1 Exhibition appeared, of the Costa Rican artist, Guillermo Vargas, known artistic like HABACUC. One of the exposed works consisted of presenting/displaying a famélico dog that Habacuc gathered of the street, and during the exhibition he appeared moored with a nylon cord, that was subject as well to another cord