Art vs. fish

last updated 8 January 2015

Kolding, Denmark

An artwork in which viewers were invited to liquefy live goldfish in a blender did not constitute cruelty to animals, a Danish judge has ruled. Peter Meyer, director of the Trapholt Art Museum in Kolding, was fined $315 for displaying artist Marco Evaristti’s installation—goldfish swimming in 10 blenders. Viewers were invited to turn on the machines. At least one person did, killing two fish. A representative of the blender manufacturer, Moulinex, testified that the goldfish probably died within a second. Judge Preben Bagger threw out the fine, saying the fish had been killed “instantly” and “humanely.” Evaristti said his intention was to make people “do battle with their conscience,” and “choose between life and death.”