In the Eye of the Beholder

December 1, 2001

1 Min Read
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Danielle Jackson

Who says trashy art isn't here to stay? At least one museum worker in London.

While cleaning the museum, Emmanuel Asare trashed an entire art exhibit because he thought it was garbage. But the tossed exhibit actually was created by London artist Damien Hirst during a launch party for a recent show of his work.

Asare, however, didn't exactly see a work of art while cleaning. All he saw was a pile of empty beer bottles, dirty ashtrays, coffee cups and candy wrappers, leftovers from the launch party and an impromptu exhibit created by Hirst.

“As soon as I clapped eyes on it, I sighed because there was so much mess … It didn't much look like art to me,” Asare told the London Sun newspaper.

Alarmed, gallery employees hastily removed the items from the garbage can and used photographs to recreate the exhibit.

Hirst was amused by the encounter, saying the misunderstanding was “fantastic, very funny.”

Source: Reuters

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