One
morning last May a controversial sculpture displayed at the University of
Wyoming was destroyed and replaced with a patchwork of ordinary sod. That sod has
itself became a form of art symbolizing censorship.
Governments have long exhibited an uneasy relationship with
artistic expression. Before UW sanctioned and then destroyed Carbon Sink, the Athenians, Romans, and the
medieval Catholic Church financed
projects they later censored. Most recently the Taliban banned most art for
fear of its potential to incite rebellion.
In a
democracy a university doesn’t normally censor artistic expression as a matter
of principle. That explains UW’s early defense of this art. But principle quickly
gave way to the political and economic pressure brought by energy companies,
donors and legislators who aren’t so excited about free expression.
Once the
controversy arose, memories differed. The contract for loaning the sculpture to
UW is silent on the issue. The artist is certain the sculpture was to remain until
natural deterioration returned it “to the earth.” A collection of logs interspersed
with coal shaped in a vortex, Carbon Sink
symbolized the impact of climate change on Rocky Mountain forests. An “ashes-to-ashes”
demise would have best made that point.
Under
great pressure, UW Art Museum Director Susan Moldenhauer offered evolving explanations
starting with, “It is also true that when the work was installed and during the
controversy of its installation last year there were both no plans to
desintall...” As political
pressure mounted, the public record evidences efforts to ameliorate critics by
assuring them the sculpture was only temporary. When Peabody Energy said the
sculpture might cost UW its 2 million dollar donation, they were told, “The
specific timeline has not been established, though the timelines discussed have
been on the order of 1 to 3 years.”
A lot had happened since Buchanan initially said, “The
University has and will promote a robust marketplace of ideas.” By the spring
of 2012 he had tired of the fight, which cost UW a 2 million dollar art
appropriation recommended by the governor and denied by the Appropriations
Committee as a penalty for displaying the sculpture. On April 10th,
Buchanan emailed Moldenhauer, “It’s about time the fire pit…disappeared. What’s the time schedule?”
She replied that Carbon
Sink’s removal was scheduled for the summer of 2013. President Buchanan wasn’t
willing to endure the threats and critics for another year. “Given the
controversy that it has generated, it would be best for UW if the fire pit
(I’ve forgotten the name of the work) could be considered part of the Prexy’s removal during
the summer of 2012.”
So last May, less than a year after it was installed, it was
destroyed in a way that sent a message. An email describing the removal said, “Some
of the larger logs were kept in our bone yard on Gibbon Street; the smaller
ones were disposed. The coal was taken
to our Central Energy Plant and used in the boilers to produce heat.”
Lessons learned? UW learned the perils of tangling with
the energy scions and their legislators, confirmed in this email to critics
from Richards who, shortly before, was named chair of UW’s art committee, “The
recent comments by policymakers, donors, and industry have opened the eyes of
the faculty and staff to (and in some cases reinforced) the contributions of
Wyoming’s energy industry, employees and contribution to the tax base.”
Rep. Lubnau walked away believing the legislature, not
artists, should make decisions about art at the University. Lubnau told Public
Radio, “I think that everybody who has a stake at the University of Wyoming
should have the opportunity to have a say in what that university looks like
for our citizens. And what better body than the
mirror of the people of the state of Wyoming through the 90 people who are
elected by the people of the state of Wyoming to have input?”
“The mirror of the people.” That phrase itself is a work
of art with meaning made clear by this unfortunate episode.
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