Thomas Hirschhorn March 11, 2006

Thomas Hirschhorn might be a Swiss-born, Paris-based artist, but such European refinement doesn't mean he's into lilies and ballerinas. Hirschhorn wants to shock you, and this internationally acclaimed artist will go to great lengths to do it. Why else would he decorate a New York gallery with snapshots of mangled Iraqi soldiers and nail-riddled mannequins? While Hirschhorn may hasten to repeat that his is not political art, but rather art made politically (a sentiment borrowed from Jean-Luc Godard), the difference can be difficult to distinguish. Then again, what's great art, and a great lecture, without a little conflict? (RM)

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