Friday, September 29, 2023

The curious case of Jens Haaning

Artist Who Submitted Empty Canvases to Danish Museum Must Repay $70,000 shouts the headline in this Smithsonian Magazine article!

Originally, the museum had a specific vision in mind: Haaning was supposed to recreate two of his earlier works—An Average Austrian Year Income (2007) and An Average Danish Annual Income (2010)—which used euros and kroner bills to visually depict average salaries in those two countries.

When Haaning pocketed the kroner, he claimed his actions (and the empty canvases) were part of a broader performance art piece, which he called Take the Money and Run.

Read the article by Christopher Parker here