Banksy, Siren of the Lamb,2013, Mixed Media, variable, Meatpacking District, New York, http://banksy.co.uk/out.asp.
Siren of the Lamb is a “moving sculpture”, in which a truck full of shrieking cuddly animals are seen being taken to the meat packing district where they would be slaughtered. Banksy’s hard hitting installation is eye capturing and makes the public think about the cruelty that animals endure while using cute cuddly animals to make the message more shocking and effective. The moving sculpture was on display in the street of the meatpacking distract in New York City.
The purpose of Siren of the Lambs is the bring awareness to animal cruelty in the meat industry. Banksy uses the normal transportation truck that would normally transport live stock to the slaughter house but instead of real animals the impact was made to the audience with cute animal toys. Using the toys instead of real animals makes the moving sculpture safe as no animal were harmed during the installation. The cute toys also packs a punch to the audience as they would associate the animals with these toys and realise the cruel and inhumane ways that the meat industry handles their live stock.
Siren of the Lambs installation is useful to the topic of animal cruelty and testing as it showcases one aspect of animal cruelty. Although my main focus is on the cosmetic industry it is good knowledge to also be aware of the other forms of animal cruelty that happens around the world every day.
The limitations of Bankys Siren of the Lambs would be that the moving sculpture only drove though the meat production industry. This limited the audience to the people only on this street. The project would have been just as successful if it drove around town to display to a wider audience.
The moving sculpture contributes to the research of the impact of animal cruelty and testing in the cosmetic industry by displaying a new way to bring across a message that most people don’t what to know. The installation, although limited, is a great source that proves inspiration to tackle the subject of animal cruelty head on as it does get results.
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