Create your own visitor map!
On 19th October 2006 in the context of the on-going exhibition Group Therapy, Contemporary Art Museum, “Museion†(Bolzano, Italy) curated by Letizia Ragaglia, the installation of the women artists duo goldiechiari has been seized by the Public Prosecutor, due to a complaint lodged by some representatives of the rightist party Alleanza Nazionale, who sued out contempt for the national anthem. At this point the work risks no longer being allowed to be exhibited in public, and the artists are investigated for a penal crime. The sound installation Imagined border (2006) combines the music theme of the Italian national anthem with the sound of several toilet flushes. The audio-recording is switched on by a sensor whenever a visitor passes through the Museum entrance. As in some previous works by goldiechiari, the aim is to debunk the officiousness as well as the sacredness related to the national anthem through the usage of everyday sounds. “For Museion the two artists have conceived a sound installation, which is part of a recent research into shared experiences that give rise to the concept of nation†(L. Ragaglia). This case of censorship could set a dangerous precedent as a restriction of artists’ freedom. Who will decide what is allowed and what is not in the next art show? goldiechiari