Sorry I have not written before. But here comes a quick newsletter.

 

One of the world's largest magazines with 73 million readers, "Business Insider", has written a great article / portrait of Galschiøt and Pillar of Shame. It can be downloaded here in the original language English. We are quite proud and happy for the thorough article.

In connection with the debate on art in honk Kong and the pillar of shame, Chris Patten says The Chinese government is demolishing the freedoms that once made the special administrative region special,

 

 

 

 

A lot is happening unbelievably around The Pillar of Shame sculpture. It is almost incomprehensible that a small workshop in Denmark can succeed in creating a sculpture project that has become one of the world's most talked about and famous works of art.

 

The Pillar of Shame sculpture has become the ultimate artistic symbol of China's reaction and abuse of its own people. June 4 is the 33rd anniversary of the massacre at Tiananmen Square 1989. Many of the activities are centered around this date, which happens to be Jens Galschiøt's birthday, which he has often spent attending memorial ceremonies around the massacre.

 

Here is a small selection of the activities that emanate from the democracy movement and from the workshop in Odense. You can also get a good impression of the activities if you read the Business Insider article.

 

• In the workshop in Denmark, we are in the process of making copies of Pillar of Shame sculptures in copper. These are smaller models of 3 to 4 meters of the large one from Hong Kong. They are to be used as permanent memorials at some of the world's leading universities. But first they just have to be used for actions / demonstrations around human rights in China (see below about the transportable memorial). The large sculptures take up a lot of space at the meeting place over time, we would like to have 6-7 pieces ready before the summer.

 

• Transportable Memorial: We are also working on converting a car trailer into a kind of running Pillar of Shame memorial to the Tiananmen massacre of 1989. We will lend the monument to activist groups in Europe. We have learned from both the installations in Rome and Budapest that it becomes quite cumbersome and relatively expensive for those who want to use The Pillar of Shame monument for temporary installations. Therefore, we have developed this transportable memorial. It complies with all standard traffic dimensions and is only 3.8 meters high, about 4 meters long and 1.8 meters wide and weighs a total of less than 900 kg. It has its own platform mounted with the copper model of

The Pillar of Shame at 2.6 meters and there is room for info material, flowers, candles etc. on the platform.

It can be set up in a few minutes and is so stable that it can be left unattended. It can be immediately hooked on a regular car trailer hook. You just unhook it from the car, lay the sides down and place it in an angle/level with the 4 jacks that are integrated in the construction. You can also use it to take part in demonstrations and other initiatives. We will finish the prototype already this week. Write if you are interested to Jens @ Galschiøt.com.

 

• Hungary: The Pillar of Shame model (2.6 m) has just returned from Hungary, where the Mayor of Budapest borrowed a 4-meter copper copy of the sculpture, which has been erected in the middle of the city for 1.5 months as a symbol against China's influence in Hungary's education policy and Viktor Orbán.

 

• Denmark: 3 copies of which the Pillar of Shame is placed in Copenhagen (Rådhuspladsen) and Ålborg (Musikhuset), respectively, where they serve as a memorial to the victims of the Ukraine war. The third has been set up in Odense on Gråbrødre Torv for a few months, but were taken down, because we had to use it for the construction of the transportable monuments.

 

• Czech Republic: In Prague, they are in the process of planning a major art exhibition focusing on the Chinese democracy movement with the participation of some of the best Chinese-critical artists. The Pillar of Shame is centrally located in the city and in the exhibition.

 

In Taiwan they are preparing an exhibition where they, among other things, will set up the Pillar of Shame in 3D print in full size of 8 meters on the 4^th of June. It will probably be one of the largest 3D prints of a sculpture that has been made so far. Galschiøt will join (if Covid 19 allows it) and will take part in the activities and talk about the massacre on Tiananmen Square in 1989.

 

• Norway: In the center of Oslo, a full-size Pillar of Shame sculpture of 8 meters will be erected on the 25^th of May in the university garden at Karl Johan street gaden (Map: https://goo.gl/maps/St1MGpdnoqYCVMga8),  , where be ceremonies and other activities will be held around the 4th of June. The Hong Kong Committee in Norway and Amnesty International are responsible for the project.

 

In the Netherlands, there are extensive activities around the Pillar of Shame. A 3D printing project about China is being made in many schools. They will 3D print the sculpture and use it in teaching.

 

• USA: In Washington DC, they are still working on raising funds to build the Pillar of Shame in

bronze in front of the Chinese Embassy. It is a rather demanding project and casting, and it will be fantastic to have a permanent memorial to the Tiananmen massacre right there in bronze. There are some good people behind the idea, so it's a pretty realistic project.

 

• Germany: The Democracy Movement is trying to enter the important art exhibition "Documenta 15" in Kassel with an art exhibition about the artistic movement that has emerged around China and their encroachment on both Hong Kong and human rights in general. But there is a doubt as to whether they succeed. Unfortunately, the established art world is not much for activist art movements.

 

• 3D and virtual worlds: We have some good Tek and IT people to make a super 3 D scan file of the Pillar of Shame in the workshop, which we will release in full quality in many gigabytes, when it is finished. It takes a long time to make this scan.

At the same time, we are working on making special 3D files that can be included as an object in e.g. mobile phone cameras and in virtual worlds e.g. in games, Metaverse, etc.. When the files are finished, they are released so that everyone can set up virtual Shame Pillars in a lot of contexts as a symbol of supporting the Chinese democracy movement and criticism of China.

 We are currently creating a very detailed photo file that can be used to print the Pillar of Shame on large photocopies up to 20 meters high. We are constantly working to develope other and new ideas and forms of action in IT field. It's quite exciting.

 

• There have been various groups in the world that 3D print and sell copies of the Pillar of Shame and use the profits to support activities around the democracy movement. We have bought 50 pcs. of the Pillar of Shame to support them, but they have not arrived at the workshop yet. You can buy copies yourself here. It is a famous art group "the Lady Liberty Group" that is behind it. You can also 3D print it yourself by downloading a copyright free 3D file here. See a 3D printer making a Pillar of Shame

 

• A lot more is happening, the above is just a selection, and we do not have an overview of it all. Most things happen by themselves without our involvement and knowledge. For security reasons, many activities cannot be published, until they are completed.

 

The original the Pillar of Shame is still in Hong Kong. It has been in a container since 24^th of December, and we have lawyers, 2 shipping companies, the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs to help get it out. It is not easy. Over 12 transport companies have said no to move it down to the port for fear of reprisals from the Chinese authorities. We try everything and we think we will succeed in getting it out one day, but when is very uncertain.

 

Galschiøt has also offered to come and pick it up with a couple of people and a mobile crane, but we estimate that he will be imprisoned and accused of the new security law. And then there are also just Corona quarantines and other obstacles. So this plan is probably not realistic either.

The best greetings

From all of us at Gallery Galschiøt

 

Contact to Jens Galschiøt
Mobil +45 40447058
E mail: jens@Galschiøt.com