Politiken by Mette Olsen 09 sept 2008

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                              "Vandalism against uninvited Art" 

The artwork of concept artist Thierry ‘Colonel’ Geoffroy was painted over by an artist college on the newly opened U-turn exhibition

Is it okay de remove an art piece from an exhibition if the artist hasn’t been invited to exhibit?

It is what the here living concept artist Thierry Geoffroy – with the alias Colonel – has experienced on the just opened U-turn exhibition shown at Carlsberg.

Nazi symbols

64 national and international artists are showing their artwork at the exhibition in the former “tappehal”, but Geoffroy was not among the invited. Instead he asked he installation artist Tanja Nellemann Poulsen, if he could lent a part of her installation – a blank wall – for making a so called penetration, and she accepted.

On the ‘Penetration Wall’ which he called the wall, Geoffroy placed two news paper clippings, both from Politiken.

One was of a swastika, the other from the iBYEN section where the word ‘nazi’ was put ona list of things hot or not at the moment.

Further on there were two prints from Facebook where another artist, Fatima Ramadan, expresses her worries that expressions such as ‘elimination’ are being still more accepted – for instance as part of TV talent shows – and that Nazi symbols as the swastika are being used randomly.

‘Penetrated artist’
‘Penetration Wall’ was built Wednesday. Friday somebody had removed the documents and tried painting over the words ‘Penetration Wall’

»This wall was foremost made to show the fact that these swastikas are shown more and more. Nazism is something, which should be debated, not something for entertainment, It is important for me that people don’t think I’m a Nazi«, says Thierry Geoffroy, who with his own words were quite »shaken« when he realized that his penetration had been removed.

He has previously penetrated other exhibitions such as the Venice Biennale and the exhibition ’Danskjävlar’ at Charlottenborg January this year. Here his penetration was also removed, even though he had the accept of the penetrated artist Jens Haaning.

»When I do these projects, I always ask the artist for permission first«, says Geoffroy.

The installation artist Tanja Nellemann Poulsen confirms, that she gave Geoffroy permission to show his art on her installation wall.

»He asked in a very gentleman-like way. That it afterwards can be eliminated like this, is weird. I wonder how something like this can be possible in Denmark«, she says.

Wasn’t’ stopped
The artistic leaders at U-Turn deny to have anything to do with the removal of the penetration. But they know who were part of the removal:

»It’s a polish artist, named Paulina Olowska, who wouldn’t have her art hanging next to swastikas. But I don’t know who the others are«, says curator Solvej Helweg Ovesen.

So she did it with your knowledge?

»No, it is completely her own initiative«.

And you did nothing to stop her?

»I couldn’t see, why I should stop it. As I understand his (Geoffroys, ed.) project, it’s living from day to day and wants reactions«.

But it isn’t normal that artists run about painting over the work of colleges, is it?

»Colonel entered as an intervention and as such he has to accept that others intervene too. It isn’t normal that artists invite artists; normally it’s curators who are inviting. Now they have made their own free space, and we have actually chosen to stay out of it. Vi have no removed anything or made anybody do anything«.

»We are of course aware of what is going on, but we know Colonel from his many interventions. He’s asking for reactions. And so far he has gotten some«, says Solvej Helweg Ovesen.

Thierry Geoffroy has no intentions of trying another penetration at the U-Turn exhibition.

»I haven’t got time for Kindergarten games. I will rather debate with real people. The modern art I marketed as a platform where you can debate reality as it is today, but the fact is that instead it debates the world as it was several years ago. And if you don’t believe in that, you are removed«.

Paulina Olowska has not wanted to be part of the article.