Miscarriage as art...wow.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Miscarriage as art...wow. (Page 1 of 2)

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:15:52 AM EDT

I'm going to hell because I laughed hysterically at this. Not because it is funny, but because it is SO fucked up.

www.yaledailynews.com/articles/view/24513

For senior, abortion a medium for art, political discourse
Martine Powers
Staff Reporter
Published Thursday, April 17, 2008

Art major Aliza Shvarts '08 wants to make a statement.

Beginning next Tuesday, Shvarts will be displaying her senior art project, a documentation of a nine-month process during which she artificially inseminated herself "as often as possible" while periodically taking abortifacient drugs to induce miscarriages. Her exhibition will feature video recordings of these forced miscarriages as well as preserved collections of the blood from the process.

The goal in creating the art exhibition, Shvarts said, was to spark conversation and debate on the relationship between art and the human body. But her project has already provoked more than just debate, inciting, for instance, outcry at a forum for fellow senior art majors held last week. And when told about Shvarts' project, students on both ends of the abortion debate have expressed shock . saying the project does everything from violate moral code to trivialize abortion.

But Shvarts insists her concept was not designed for "shock value."

"I hope it inspires some sort of discourse," Shvarts said. "Sure, some people will be upset with the message and will not agree with it, but it's not the intention of the piece to scandalize anyone."

The "fabricators," or donors, of the sperm were not paid for their services, but Shvarts required them to periodically take tests for sexually transmitted diseases. She said she was not concerned about any medical effects the forced miscarriages may have had on her body. The abortifacient drugs she took were legal and herbal, she said, and she did not feel the need to consult a doctor about her repeated miscarriages.

Shvarts declined to specify the number of sperm donors she used, as well as the number of times she inseminated herself.

Art major Juan Castillo '08 said that although he was intrigued by the creativity and beauty of her senior project, not everyone was as thrilled as he was by the concept and the means by which she attained the result.

"I really loved the idea of this project, but a lot other people didn't," Castillo said. "I think that most people were very resistant to thinking about what the project was really about. [The senior-art-project forum] stopped being a conversation on the work itself."

Although Shvarts said she does not remember the class being quite as hostile as Castillo described, she said she believes it is the nature of her piece to "provoke inquiry."

"I believe strongly that art should be a medium for politics and ideologies, not just a commodity," Shvarts said. "I think that I'm creating a project that lives up to the standard of what art is supposed to be."

The display of Schvarts' project will feature a large cube suspended from the ceiling of a room in the gallery of Green Hall. Schvarts will wrap hundreds of feet of plastic sheeting around this cube; lined between layers of the sheeting will be the blood from Schvarts' self-induced miscarriages mixed with Vaseline in order to prevent the blood from drying and to extend the blood throughout the plastic sheeting.

Schvarts will then project recorded videos onto the four sides of the cube. These videos, captured on a VHS camcorder, will show her experiencing miscarriages in her bathrooom tub, she said. Similar videos will be projected onto the walls of the room.

School of Art lecturer Pia Lindman, Schvarts' senior-project advisor, could not be reached for comment Wednesday night.

Few people outside of Yale's undergraduate art department have heard about Shvarts' exhibition. Members of two campus abortion-activist groups . Choose Life at Yale, a pro-life group, and the Reproductive Rights Action League of Yale, a pro-choice group . said they were not previously aware of Schvarts' project.

Alice Buttrick '10, an officer of RALY, said the group was in no way involved with the art exhibition and had no official opinion on the matter.

Sara Rahman '09 said, in her opinion, Shvarts is abusing her constitutional right to do what she chooses with her body.

"[Shvarts' exhibit] turns what is a serious decision for women into an absurdism," Rahman said. "It discounts the gravity of the situation that is abortion."

CLAY member Jonathan Serrato '09 said he does not think CLAY has an official response to Schvarts' exhibition. But personally, Serrato said he found the concept of the senior art project "surprising" and unethical.

"I feel that she's manipulating life for the benefit of her art, and I definitely don't support it," Serrato said. "I think it's morally wrong."

Shvarts emphasized that she is not ashamed of her exhibition, and she has become increasingly comfortable discussing her miscarriage experiences with her peers.

"It was a private and personal endeavor, but also a transparent one for the most part," Shvarts said. "This isn't something I've been hiding."

The official reception for the Undergraduate Senior Art Show will be from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on April 25. The exhibition will be on public display from April 22 to May 1. The art exhibition is set to premiere alongside the projects of other art seniors this Tuesday, April 22 at the gallery of Holcombe T. Green Jr. Hall on Chapel Street.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:17:06 AM EDT

[#1]

She sounds like a real catch.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:17:15 AM EDT

[#2]

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:18:08 AM EDT

[#3]

Just when you think you've heard it all....

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:18:34 AM EDT

[#4]

what the fuck is wrong with this woman?!?!

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:18:47 AM EDT

[#5]

That is like 1000000 kinds of fucked up. Really. I know Planned Parenthood people who would find that offensive.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:20:12 AM EDT

[#6]

wow, we could've save a bunch of abortions if somebody had just done one a long time ago.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:21:52 AM EDT

[#7]

Not funny. Not artistic.
Disturbing, appalling, twisted and sick.
She needs a nice padded room.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:22:27 AM EDT

[#8]

Can I say that she should go masturbate with a barbed wire covered baseball bat?

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:22:44 AM EDT

[#9]

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:23:48 AM EDT

[#10]

With this level of stupidity, I could have gone to Yale.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:24:49 AM EDT

[#11]

Quoted:
Not funny. Not artistic.
Disturbing, appalling, twisted and sick.
She needs a nice padded room.

Not that I care, but that could not have been good for her body.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:25:31 AM EDT

[#12]

Unbelievable. She should be commited, not promoted.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:26:05 AM EDT

[#13]

Quoted:
Not that I care, but that could not have been good for her body.

Hopefully, it leaves her barren and unable to have a child.

She should not breed.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:26:12 AM EDT

[#14]

Well....this is actually more ridiculous than a local university "art" project that was a urinal with George Bush, Dick Cheney, Condoleeza Rice, and the American flag painted on it with an encouragement to "piss on" the warmongers.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:26:13 AM EDT

[#15]

Yuck

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:27:26 AM EDT

[#16]

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:30:44 AM EDT

[#17]

I stopped reading when I got to "the art major's" family name.

Shvart , a verb. The act of emitting flatulence accompanied by an unspecified quantity of fecal matter.

Usage: I was at the party speaking with Aliza and I shvarted in my new pair of Dockers.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:31:37 AM EDT

[#18]

Quoted:

Not that I care, but that could not have been good for her body.

Great, now she can say she "suffered for her 'art,'" too.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:34:41 AM EDT

[#19]

Quoted:

She needs a nice padded room.

I disagree..
She needs to be clubbed like a baby seal!!! sick bitch!!!

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:36:33 AM EDT

[#20]

This is a sick sick sick person.

Basically - this person is a serial killer who is going to get away with it.

Personally, I abhor abortion, but I am politically pro-choice. I think we need to work on the reasons abortions are needed - not just out law it.

But even in a pro-choice world abortion should be used to correct a 'mistake'. This is a case of wanton destruction of life. Playing God.

Sick sick sick.

And I am an artist and usually will support the most retarded works as still being 'art' (albeit crappy art). This repulses me and is evil.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:39:04 AM EDT

[#21]

I heard she was building pipe bombs.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:42:44 AM EDT

[#22]

Quoted:

Quoted:

She needs a nice padded room.

I disagree..
She needs to be clubbed like a baby seal!!! sick bitch!!!

I was being nice. I don't really know why.....

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:43:50 AM EDT

[#23]

"not about shock value" my ass. I'm definitely pro-abortion, but that's just f-ing retarded.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:45:25 AM EDT

[#24]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Not that I care, but that could not have been good for her body.

Hopefully, it leaves her barren and unable to have a child.

She should not breed.

+1

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:52:42 AM EDT

[#25]

That's eighteen kinds of fucked up.

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:57:27 AM EDT

[#26]

I'm sick of this "shock" art bullshit. Fucking deadbeat shit brain artists that have no talent notice that if you do something despicably controversial that suddenly you are a recognized artist. News flash, recognition does not equate to talent or respect (same thing can be said about most rap/pop artists).

Posted: 4/17/2008 6:57:35 AM EDT

[#27]

Disgusting.

oh, and here is the vile trollop....

Posted: 4/17/2008 7:11:11 AM EDT

[#28]

Could have been worse.

She could have made a beautiful painting with the words "God Bless America" written across it.

Now THAT would have been controversial.

"promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art"
~ The Naked Communist, 1958.

Posted: 4/17/2008 7:37:21 AM EDT

[#29]

I don't often say this, but I'm speechless.

I can't put it any other way.

Posted: 4/17/2008 7:41:30 AM EDT

[#30]

Wow... fucked. ~~But there needs to be a pic so we can see waht a fucked up person looks like.~~

I see a pic..... alsdkhfaofhasdfa

Posted: 4/17/2008 7:42:08 AM EDT

[#31]

I don't even know how to respond to this level of fucked up

Posted: 4/17/2008 7:43:20 AM EDT

[#32]

Maybe her mom should've had a "self induced miscarriage".

I'm just sayin...

Posted: 4/17/2008 7:49:38 AM EDT

[#33]

Posted: 4/17/2008 7:53:37 AM EDT

[#34]

Did her daddy not love her enough, or did he loved her just a little too much?

Posted: 4/17/2008 7:54:13 AM EDT

[#35]

Sounds like the display is a biohazard risk. They need to get someone to come in and do some decon.

Posted: 4/17/2008 7:56:13 AM EDT

[#36]

Crap like this takes some of the aura away from Yale. (same deal with hObama's Princeton thesis)

Used to be a H-Y-P degree was a sign of intelligence.

No more.

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:00:41 AM EDT

[#37]

If she can do this...

...can I legally (and repeatedly) walk into a bar in the ghetto and yell the "N" word at everyone, then be justified in "defending myself" when I shoot everyone who tries to kill/harm me?

Just because something is legal, doesn't mean one should TRY to make it happen.

Doesn't Roe vs Wade grant her privacy in her medical records?

Since she's not having an actual medical procedure, and since she is making all this PUBLIC, can this be prosecuted?

AFAIK, there is no legal stance on when life begins... this seems way different than a privacy issue. Of course, I may be completely wrong on my assumption.

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:00:53 AM EDT

[#38]

That is just disgusting on so many levels.

Evil comes in many forms; we've just seen another. And it's sad, but some sick, twisted person will come up with an even worse idea for "art" in the future.

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:02:06 AM EDT

[#39]

I hope she perishes doing this...and suffers immensely.

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:07:46 AM EDT

[#40]

She is one sick, puppy.

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:09:34 AM EDT

[#41]

Sure, she is a psycho, but what about all the sycophantic retards going to "appreciate her work"?

If the whole Holcombe T. Green Jr. Hall burned to the ground on opening night with everyone inside, the world will be a better place.

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:09:45 AM EDT

[#42]

Her mother should have had a miscarriage. That woman needs a lobotomy to improve her mental state.

Being placed in a tank that slowly fills with hydrofluoric acid would be too good a fate for her.

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:10:04 AM EDT

[#43]

Quoted:
Sounds like the display is a biohazard risk. They need to get someone to come in and do some decon.

It sounds to me like her faculty adviser needs to be fired. If she was doing this for college credit....

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:16:16 AM EDT

[#44]

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:17:07 AM EDT

[#45]

At least she's not breeding.

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:24:27 AM EDT

[#46]

This reminds me of a quote from another Arfcomer, something like:

Just because nobody understands you doesn't mean you are an artist.

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:24:51 AM EDT

[#47]

Instead of a diploma, they should give her a t-shirt.

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:26:56 AM EDT

[#48]

She is a disgusting excuse for a human being.

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:30:23 AM EDT

[#49]

miscarriage?

Nice how people change language to make them feel better about what they are doing.

Murder of unborn human changed to Abortion changed to Self Induced Miscarriage...

Posted: 4/17/2008 8:32:39 AM EDT

[#50]

This thread is very easy to masturbate to...

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Miscarriage as art...wow. (Page 1 of 2)

General » General Discussion

Warning

Confirm Action

About AR15.COM

Stay Connected

Newsletter

Contact Us