“I think it’s still art and still belongs to Buchel” —MASS MoCA Curator

Although Joe Thompson himself has stated that it is an artist that dictates when something is or isn’t art, and that Büchel’s Training Ground for Democracy is “the best unfinished work of art of the century,” that it is “deeply moving,” “a phenomenon,” and “the Guernica of our time,” MASS MoCA continues with their “fuck you” attitude. They continue to argue that they are not presenting and exhibiting Buchel’s unfinished artwork without his permission by covering “the Materials with tarps and other measured designed to obstruct public view of and access to the Materials.”

Unfortunately, MASS MoCA’s contention is an absolute lie. On August 24th, 2007, CLANCCO toured MASS MoCA’s Building #5 and was able—with very little visual obstruction—to view Buchel’s artwork. Although there was very little security on site that day, not much security is needed, as the 48” tarps cover very little of Buchel’s installation. The pictures in this article clearly show that the tarp coverings serve not to occult Büchel’s unfinished work of art, but rather to evoke and provoke a voyeuristic desire on the part of the touring audience. As if this was not enough, the Museum violently and intentionally disregarded Büchel’s instructions by continuing to “install” Büchel’s work, without his participation, for four months after their ceased communication.

In fact, MASS MoCA’s current exhibit, Made at MASS MoCA, –which the Museum argues was not a personal attack on Buchel– could have been installed in a location within the Museum where viewers are not forced to confront the Buchel installation, counter to the Museum’s argument that Made at MASS MoCA can only be accessed by walking through the Buchel installation.

This type of gross deviance from an artist’s instructions or wishes should shock the conscience of any contemporary artist. That curators and directors welcome any opportunity to play artist is a current psychological artworld manifestation. However, that curators, directors, and Museum’s suffer from aesthetic castration complexes and therefore take an artists ideas, work, and materials and intentionally and willfully modify and distort it in order to satisfy their own grandiose desires is appalling and devastating at best.

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