October 11th saw Banksy deploy a delivery truck to tour around the Meatpacking District of NYC. Chock full of cuddly animals, it suddenly emerges that there’s a loud screaming noise, indicating animals in distress.
According to the audio guide on the website, the heads of the animals are controlled by a team of mime artists inside the truck (really?)
“This is a piece of sculpture art, and I know what you’re thinking: isn’t it a bit… subtle.” chimes the guide. Subtle indeed.
“making some sort of comment on the casual cruelty of the food industry” or forging “an attempt at something vague and pretentious about the loss of childhood innocence”.
“The truck contains over 60 cuddly soft toys on the road to a swift death. However, in order to bring them to life, four professional puppeteers are required, strapped into bucket seats, dressed entirely in black lycra, pulling on an array of levers with each limb and given only one toilet break a day – proving that the only sentient beings held in lower esteem than livestock are mime artists.”
“From what we know of Banksy he spent time working in a butcher’s shop as a youth, where he was in charge of mincing beef, an experience that seems to have resonated with him in later life.”
Finishing with a child singing “Old Macdonald had a farm”. Classic, yet haunting.
What do you think?
