Icelandic art student Thórarinn Ingi Jónsson caused quite a fuss in downtown Toronto this week when he left a phony bomb in an art gallery as part of an art project. The gallery was cleared and police closed streets in the city center.
“I created a sculpture from wood and paint that looked like a bomb at first glance. I then recorded two videos on a cell phone that show a blast,” Jónsson, who is studying at the Ontario College of Art and Design in Toronto, told Fréttabladid.
“The day I was supposed to show my final project I went to the gallery and placed the sculpture next to a bench with a note saying it wasn’t a bomb,” Jónsson continued. Then he went back to his class to show his artwork and only found out later how much trouble it had caused.
“I haven’t heard from the police but I spoke to the college’s lawyer before I started making the artwork,” Jónsson said, adding the Canadian media has been rather negative towards his work, saying it can hardly be categorized as art.
Jónsson is not bothered by the negative coverage. He explained his work was inspired by Marcel Duchamp who placed a toilet in an art gallery. Jónsson said his work is also a reference to modern times.
“This wouldn’t have been such a big deal before September 11, 2001. Everything has changed since then. The timing of the work is therefore important,” Jónsson concluded.
