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N.B. gallery aims to spark debate with urine-soaked crucifix photo, Tory MP weighs in
The controversial photograph is on loan from Vancouver and appears in an exhibit that Beaverbrook says is meant to spur public dialogue.
- The Beaverbrook Art Gallery in Fredericton opened an exhibition of American artist Andres Serrano's Piss Christ on Saturday, marking the work's first showing in Atlantic Canada via loan from the Rennie Collection in Vancouver.
- Executive director Bernard Doucet said the gallery displays the work to provoke public conversation, emphasizing that museums have a responsibility to provide 'the impetus for conversation and dialogue' about contemporary religious art.
- Artist Andres Serrano maintains the photograph is a personal expression of faith, stating, "It's not an attack on God or the Church, but instead a celebration of both." This challenges critics' characterization of the work as sacrilegious.
- Conservative MP John Williamson criticized the exhibit as "not great art in any serious sense," accusing the gallery of "recycling a controversy that peaked long ago." The Roman Catholic Diocese of Saint John did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
- The photograph has previously faced vandalism, including hammer attacks in Melbourne in 1997 and in France in 2011; the gallery displays Serrano's work near Salvador Dali's 13-foot Santiago El Grande in the Dali Chapel to contextualize modern religious art alongside centuries-old works.
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23 Articles
23 Articles
An art gallery in eastern Canada uses a controversial photograph, damaged with hammers, representing a crucifix floating in urine to generate public debate, which even led to a Member of Parliament's criticism.
·Montreal, Canada
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The Toronto Star+19 Reposted by 19 other sources
N.B. gallery aims to spark debate with urine-soaked crucifix photo, Tory MP weighs in
FREDERICTON - An art gallery in Eastern Canada is leveraging a notorious, damaged photograph of a crucifix floating in urine to spark public discourse — even drawing criticism from a
·Toronto, Canada
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N.B. MP accuses Beaverbrook gallery of ‘recycling a controversy’
A Conservative New Brunswick MP is accusing the Beaverbrook Art Gallery of “recycling a controversy that peaked long ago,” stating a move to exhibit one of the most controversial art works of the 1980s this summer “is not brave.”
·Saint John, Canada
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Coverage Details
Total News Sources23
Leaning Left16Leaning Right1Center4Last UpdatedBias Distribution76% Left
Bias Distribution
- 76% of the sources lean Left
76% Left
L 76%
C 19%
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