We're clearly big fans of UTD's Greg Metz -- not for nothing did we once bestow upon him our Best Visual Artist award. In doing so, we claimed that "his art carries energy and a bit of controversy," which so happened to include a certain work done in a certain Airstream. Makes sense, then, that this should arrive in the Unfair Park in-box moments ago from our friends at the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals:
DALLAS ARTIST RECREATES LAST SUPPER WITH FAMOUS VEGETARIANS INSTEAD OF APOSTLES ON NATIONAL MALLThe piece is currently sitting in the shadow of the Washington Monument and will remain there till Sunday. But if you can't make it to D.C. before then, there's always the Flickr page. I've left Metz a message to see where it's headed next.
Greg Metz's 27-Foot Display Titled The Diner Depicts the Drugging, Confinement of Animals on Factory Farms
Award-winning Texas artist Greg Metz's creation The Diner, a display that was fashioned from a converted trailer, is intriguing National Mall visitors and drawing attention to the cruelty of factory farming. One side of the display depicts pigs confined to narrow cages as they are about to receive an injection, cows bleeding to death at a slaughterhouse, and a meat inspector accepting a bribe. On the other side, in a scene called "The Last Supper," a number of vegetarian celebrities -- including Leonardo da Vinci, Mahatma Gandhi, Sir Paul McCartney, and Pamela Anderson -- are portrayed sitting around a table.
Update at 5:17 p.m.: I just spoke with Metz, who says that since the piece's debut years ago, it has been throughout Europe on PETA's dime. He also says "it went off the Autobahn, and we had to stitch it back together -- everyone was almost killed." Alas, after the overhaul new pieces were added, among them Pamela Anderson. After it's done in D.C., he says, the piece will be shipped back to PETA HQ and used in another campaign.
Initially, he says, the piece belonged to a woman who commissioned several pieces from the local artist; she eventually transferred ownership to PETA. Funny aside: "My plan was to chase the Oscar Meyer Weiner Truck around the country as kind of a fun counterpoint."
