A huge piece of feces: the scandalous work of a Swiss sculptor is being demolished in Moscow

The dismantling of Urs Fischer's scandalous sculpture "Big Clay No. 4" on Bolotnaya Embankment has begun in Moscow. This was reported by the press service of the House of Culture "HES-2" in the telegram channel.

It is noted that the monument will replace another object, the author and name of which have not yet been disclosed.

"The change of the object is part of the planned rotation of works of art in the urban environment and the development of the territory adjacent to The House of Culture," the message says.

The sculpture "Big Clay No. 4" with a height of 13 meters was installed on Bolotnaya Embankment in 2021. Previously, Fischer's work was exhibited in the squares of New York and Florence. The work consists of pieces of clay, kneaded by the artist's hand, and then magnified many times and cast in aluminum. It has become both a metaphor for the human need to create, and an illustration of one of the missions of the House of Culture — to give everyone such an opportunity.

The sculpture was critically received by Muscovites. Fischer's work was often called a "piece of feces" on social networks, and even during her stay in Manhattan, critic Jeremy Sigler called her "the most expensive shit in the art casino." Fischer himself responded to criticism with the thesis — "art is what you make of it."

The curator of the exhibitions, Francesco Bonami, predicted that the "Big Clay No. 4" would merge with the DNA of the city and assured that in 100 years even a conversation about "an attempt to remove it would cause a big scandal."