Fake Pipebomb Found at ROM, Associated OCAD-Linked Videos Surface on YouTube

i hope they get aids... do they teach poetic justice at ocad?

Please don't think that this guy willingly disrupted an AIDS benefit for an art project, of course it was just a coincidence.

If I was gonna pull a bomb hoax, I'd probably put enough thought into it to find out what exactly I was disrupting.

Of course, if I put any thought into it, I wouldn't pull a bomb hoax.

I don't know who did this but I would agree with Adams and suggest they didn't purposefully disrupt an AIDS benefit.

I'm going to take a wait-and-see attitude towards this but here are some of my initial thoughts:

Anything that disrupts the ROM is okay with me.

This is one of the more interesting incidents potentially connected to OCAD in awhile.

If mentioning the Jesse Powers' incident is the best you can do, I would dig a little deeper and maybe look at this from a global perspective. Are there any artists who have tried to pull off a piece with a similar context? Did they succeed or fail and why?

I'd like to add that the ROM, being a museum and publicly-funded (mind you, woefully at that) could be a way better public space if it tried.

Standing outside and taking pictures doesn't count and does a disservice to what museums should be about.

This strangely kinda reminds me of the Murder Party film I saw at the recent Toronto After Dark Film Festival: It's a black comedy where New York art school students try to make a statement and attempt to stage a murder on Hallowe'en.

Kensington (cat, not market) isn't the context for this event, it's the context for my current leanings towards expecting the worst of a certain type of so-called artist.

I know what you mean about the public space, but I also think that it's new for everyone, people don't really know what to make of it yet, and it's developing. Now Dundas Square, that's useless public space in my eyes, it never seems anything but pretty empty which is ridiculous given its location... exceptions being when corporations rent it out to advertise.

As for other people pulling similar stunts, Aussie Colin Barnett did something similar but more creative and with more effort outside the National Gallery of Victoria (Oz, not BC) and got a huge fine and 3 months for his cultural contribution.

Honestly, this doesn't even seem like a "piece" of artwork in any way, the videos are one (shaky, blurry) thing, but the actual bomb scare was pretty much a straight-up bomb scare... no sculpture in a crate here. I'm not sure that calling a bomb scare a work of art in any way makes it one, or any and every malicious act could simply be labelled art, no? Was 9/11 just really innovative installation and mixed media?

Do you know any OCA(D) grads? Would any of them dream of such a stunt?
Perhaps the dream of YouTube fame and notoriety these days is too alluring for some?

Remember the recent Bridesmaid Wig Out"?

I'm not calling it a piece of art because I don't know the whos and whys of the issue.

Art is all about the idea. Assuming this was intended as a piece, the next quesion is whether it was good or not and I simply don't have enough information at this time to make that kind of judgement.

My hesitation to compare this to Jesse Powers (beyond the dubious OCAD connection) is that we don't know what type of artists they are or even if they are indeed artists.

What was there intent? Are they making a good point or indulging in stupid wankery? Maybe it was just a prank? A prank can still be art if it makes a good point.

I am intrigued.

I prefer Jubal Brown's work, myself!

I think we should just wait and see. I heard through the grapevine that there might be an interview with the proprieters...

I don't like Jubal very much but at least you know where he's coming from.

It wasn't just an AIDS fundraiser that was disrupted. There was another event, albeit smaller, at the theatre - a lecture on Canadian Icons. I was there for that. We were kept waiting for an hour. The event was supposed to start at 630, but we waited in the theatre, with no idea what was going on, until about 730. A ROM rep went up the stage around 7pm and said that "There has been an emergency at the ROM, wait for further advise, yadda yadda... At least you have the Travellers to listen to." Which drove some of us nuts.At 730, with no word yet, some of us started to leave. One of the speakers, informally chatting at the lobby, just said that the reason for the emergency was "complicated." If the threat had been found and disabled by 7pm, they should have let us go. What was the point of keeping the audience, uninformed and waiting, for an extended period?

I always look for the best in everyone, so I'm hoping this person didn't call in the bomb threat for an art project but got the idea from the bomb scare itself.

Even if this is the case, I really don't think this is art. If it wasn't for a potential death scare, this video would be completely boring. This whole thing reeks of no talent. People like this have slandered the term artist.
Does any "artist" anymore paint nice impressionist painting of street scenes in Toronto? If it has a street car in it, I'd pay good money for it. Really, is it that beauty in art is not "edgy" or is it that these "artists" don't have the technical ability to do it?

This whole thing sucks.

Adams, you seem pretty convinced of the perpetrator's intent. How are you "sure" they didn't plan it to interrupt the AIDS Gala?

If it was this Icelandic OCAD student that is involved in the actual device hoax, it would appear that he was watching for reaction online up until about 11:30pm last night. That's the last time "toadment" accessed his YouTube account.

I am pretty sure they didn't look up what events were happening at the ROM, on the day. Despite that oversight, it's a great piece of work.

You mean this guy: ?

Whoops. this guyhttp://www.myocad.com/members.php?id=meat_for_toads

Pomophobe, please elaborate on what exactly makes you this a "great piece of work"?

I'm with Mike, I hope they get AIDS. It doesn't matter if it was on purpose or a coincidence, what's done is done. It is of great cost to the city and consequently to us taxpayers to deal with this idiotic pranks.

I can't believe that you people that are saying "I hope they get AIDS." I'm as disgusted by that knee-jerk eye-for-an-eye reaction as I am by the hoax.

Work of art or not, from his OCAD page:

"favourite work of art
the destruction of the World Trade Centres"

That in itself is a sign of a sick mind.

I am so shocked to hear that this incident is linked to OCAD. As an OCAD student, this makes me very sad and I can only hope that it turns out to be untrue in some way.

Please don't think OCAD does not teach "poetic justice" or how to be a great designer or an artists. OCAD is a great school, of course it has its problems too, but all in all it is a friendly, creative, and inspirational environment. We would never support EVER such an act, fake bomb or attacking an AIDS fund raiser. If anything, I know too many people who are passionate in changing and helping the world to become a better place. In Industrial Design this is what we aim to work for every day for every project.

I hope this incident will not shape your opinion on OCAD nor young artists.

Mali, as a fellow OCAD student, I never felt that OCAD managed to engage the students in any kind of political awareness. For the most part, the students are uninformed kids from the suburbs who can barely rouse themselves to protest tuition increases if someone does all the work for them.

Sure, some of them want to stir things up, but understanding the issues or the consequences are beyond them. Shit like this is EXACTLY what the atmosphere of OCAD engenders.

So see, the artist is being so "critical" and making us compare the new glamorous ROM to the WTC... and rethink our ideas of "terror" or whatever... but why target actual supporters of arts and humanitarian charities in Toronto? This screams self-aggrandizing art posturing.

It shouldn't matter if this person is from OCAD or not, regardless of what school they attend, this was a criminal act, a waste of tax payers money and a scare to the pedestrians in the area. Why should art be except from the law? In the name of art? BS.

The person or persons who did this should be locked for a long time as a result. So in a way I do agree with Mike's comment.

that should be "exempt" not except

Industrial designers are trying to sell you their useless bloated commodity's under the proclamation of "changing and helping the world".
Ignore their opinions and avoid at all costs, they may attack with their iphones and Philip Starck juicers.
They are against recontextualization. It clashes with making more new stuff.

To Kurpz, please don't try to "interpret" this act in any type of artful way because it's not. Frankly it's just an act of violence without meaning. This was a fake THREAT. I hope this person goes to jail. If this person was really trying to make people think, this person would write a book. But that takes discipline, intelligence and talent. People who lack those things have to resort to this to get noticed. And unfortuanately we're all giving this person attention.

Overcompensation and pretentiousness. Two things that ruin art for me.

I'll decide for myself if its art, if its relevant or with purpose, or if it was just a waste of my time. When something tries too hard, and does it for the attention rather then for the art, then for me it ceases to be art anymore then an 8-year old throwing a tantrum in a checkout lineup.

If you make something and then try to tell me its art, then chances are I wont agree. You had an idea and implemented it. I will decide for myself beyond that.

At this point, I agree with other comments in that we dont know the intent or any real details. Based on the other videos by the same user on YouTube, this isn't art, its just attention-whoring. To me, Britney Spears getting out of a car showing her crotch is no less art then this.

To Brian, thank you!
I know photographers, painters, animators and editors who produce great work (professionally too, but mostly I enjoy the work they produce on the side)
Their work is just good when you look at it and is interesting. No explanations needed. These people work hard at what they do, but don't really call themselves "artists" (even though they are true artists, in my opinion) because of the connotation that arises.

"Industrial designers are trying to sell you their useless bloated commodity's under the proclamation of "changing and helping the world"."

How is that even relevant at all here?

And I believe it's "commodities" not "commodity's"

What does one do if they were to recognize the people in the video?

Seriously, are the police looking into this guy? Have they seen his OCAD profile? Idolizes Adolph Hitler? Destruction of the WTC? Books are for burning? Listens to Joy Division?? Can he be arrested for being such a fucking tired clich? of an angry art-school asshole?

I'm a grad of OCAD as well, and it pisses me off when these so-called "artists" excuse destructive sociopathic behavior as being "art".

Curiously enough, after taking another look at toadmeat's YouTube profile, I realized that I know one of the two people listed as a friend/contact. Doesn't necessarily mean they know each other personally, but I sent him a message and will see whether he has any comments to offer.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416−808−5204, Crime Stoppers
anonymously at 416−222−TIPS (8477), or online at www.222tips.com.

After "toadmeat" gets out of prison and is deported back to Iceland, the only way he is going to get off that island is by boat as his name will be on "no-fly" lists for eternity. It will be effectively a second prison sentence, but it serves him right for willfully being a complete idiot.

I just went to the Star website and I noticed that the story appears to be gone from the site. Only when I searched for it did I find it. It looks like they don't want to give this person any more attention.

CA, it's still front page news on thestar.com

"Museum bomb hoax cancels fundraiser"

Also on the GTA news page.

CA: Your conception of "what art is" was old-fashioned 60 years ago, get over it.
That aside, I think this fake bombing is pretty immature and could have been put together better. If these people wanted to pull off some self-aggrandizing gesture it could have been grander.

Your not a artist. get over it. move on.
but you are desperate losers

I sincerely hope that the "package" marked "this is not a bomb" was left at the ROM unintentionally, and not as a form of art. Gratuitously wasting city resources while serving detriment to an AIDS research benefit certainly isn't art. It's a powerful display of ignorance, inconsideration and ability to interfere with others' hard work, which, again, is not art.
I hope the culprits feel compelled to come forward and offer a public apology to CANFAR, Toronto's emergency services, and all those affected by the bomb scare.
If it was merely an accident as they forgot their class project (or whatever this was) in the building, then hopefully a public apology will entice the city to forgive your neglect, as I certainly would. But if this was "art" and your ego is too great to pass this off as an act of negligence, you will receive what is due, as well as a permanently tainted reputation (especially in the art community).

the discussion should be about how long these people should go away for if/when proven guilty. this is a terrorist crime and should be treated as such. there is no room to discuss whether this is art. it's not. it's crime.

To Softly, thanks for your comment. I'll stick to what I like. Anything else I won't buy.

:-)

I think you are all overlooking the fact that there is no actual crime committed here. It was not a bomb. The explosive aspect of it was in the minds of the beholders. It was not a bomb and the YouTube videos were not videos of a bombing. What, specifically, is the crime?

The crime was terrorizing people in the area. If you hold a knife to someone's throat, laugh and walk off, is that not a crime? Just because someone isn't physically injured does not mean a crime wasn't committed. There is no justifying threatening people in the street.

Plus, not to mention all the police resources wasted and the cancellation of the fundraiser. If someone put a fake bomb outside your front step and you weren't allowed in your house for hours in the freezing cold as you worried all your possessions would be blown up in the meantime, would you think it was funny?

D:

Making something that looks like a bomb and leaving it in a public place most certainly is a crime: public mischief and conveying false messages if he's lucky, conspiracy to commit terrorism if he's unlucky. I hope it's the latter.

umm, charges? how about causing a public disturbance, for starters...

how about possession of an immitation weapon, and public mischief...

calling in a bomb threat is up to one year in jail and a $5000 fine. i think that charge might fit here.

Is he truly conveying false messages? The note said it was not a bomb. That was perfectly true.

Are you familiar with that Magritte painting that reads, "Ceci n'est pas une pipe."? It is not a pipe, it is a painting of a pipe. This was not a bomb, it was a sculpture of a bomb.

and while our laws aren't necessarily American enough for a terrorism charge, I definitely do think that this behaviour coming from someone who has apparently been publically going on about loving Hitler, admiring Osama Bin Laden and calling 9/11 the best piece of artwork they've ever seen most definitely warrants a no-fly listing, not to mention a few years on some secret CSIS watch list. thousands of people dying in NYC = incredible art, acting like I'm going to blow up the ROM = my art... do any of you really want to see those two points move closer together?

D, I disagree with your argument.

the bomb squad showed up, cleared the area and exploded the suspicious package. yes, i'd say that's a false message, loud and clear.

I believe Magritte also said "don't put pretend bombs in public spaces unless you plan to go to jail, dumbass"

precisely what is happening right here, on this blog page is the art: bringing into the spotlight the ongoing debate of what is art/ or is not. That is nothing new, it is what art has been doing for the last century, but it has become stale in the gallery setting, so now it's on the streets.
The unplanned reaction, and unfolding of it to the piece by the public and the media is an integral component.
Death of the author is the birth of the writer; the meaning of it lies in how each of chooses to percieve it.
There is no crime, there is no false message. Saying that the cancellation of an AIDS benefit is unfortunate, a very unfortunate side effect.

D:

by your logic, if a stranger pulls out a 'sculpture' of a gun and points it at you and says "this is not a gun", then no crime has been committed?

I dont think so.

Just to clarify c's comment: the package was not exploded. It was not a bomb and contained no explosive device.

Also, can you cite that Magritte quote?

D, I live a couple of blocks east of the ROM. This situation was not funny to me all. You can dress it up as much as you like. But it was still a crime committed by a talentless hack.

A,
When I wanted to see art, I went to Florence and saw David. Just amazing. I don't want to be faced with crime in my neighbourhood when I'm minding my own business.
I also saw a bunch of petty criminals selling knockoff bags in Florence, but I suppose that's recontextualization of consumer goods in your eyes.

D, it's not a quote, it's a painting:
http://cours.funoc.be/essentiel/article/img151/magritte.jpg

I can see how this could be considered art, as he is reimagining a canonical work into a different context, but it is also an assholish prank, which had some very bad (hopefully unintended) consequences. I hope they throw the book at him.

Terrorism: the calculated use of violence (or the threat of violence) against civilians in order to attain goals that are political or religious or ideological in nature; this is done through intimidation or coercion or instilling fear.

so how is this not terrorism? Its the calculated use of the threat of violence against civilians in order to attain ideological goals through the instillation of fear. sounds like terrorism to me.

I've decided that I still like the idea of a fake bombing but what I don't like is the unknown artist's sloppy way of creating material to accompany their bomb threat.

The video was poorly done, they didn't link it to anything (ANYTHING!) happening in the world or even in the city so we have no motive and they shouldn't have done it during an AIDS benefit (knowing full well that that would piss people off who might otherwise respond to whatever they were trying to say).

Magritte also said that the present reeks of mediocrity and the atom bomb.

..."Thorarinn Ingi Jonsson" seems to reek similarly.

I think it is pretty clear now that the AIDS benefit aspect was unintentional.

To Ben: I was referring (tongue in cheek) to c's Magritte quote, "don't put pretend bombs in public spaces unless you plan to go to jail, dumbass"

To blank: in fact, someone has before pulled out a fake gun, sculpted out of a potato, and used it to break out of prison. It was John Dillinger. This event was satirized in a Woody Allen film. The real event became an expression of art. These boundaries are crossed all the time.

D, how is it pretty clear that the AIDS benefit aspect was unintentional?

It's also nice to see that "D" has been spreading the same asinine excuses and non-sensical Magritte references at Torontoist.

Elle Driver: the Magritte reference is perfectly valid, either here or on Torontoist.com. Both artists deal with recontextualization, the meaning of objects and the subject/object relationship. In modern times, perhaps, an artist has to be a bit more bold.

It might come as a surprise to all of the self-absorbed wannabe artists defending toadmeat's criminal actions, but the right to free speech has never been absolute. The classic example is that you do not have the right to shout "Fire!" in a crowded theatre; if you did commit such an act resulting in panicked patrons being trampled to death in a stampede, you could expect to be charged with murder or manslaughter.

No one was harmed physically in this case, but the potential for physical harm existed. And it also caused financial harm to the charity and inconvenience to a great many people. The self-absorbed scumbag who perpetrated this hoax is a criminal and deserves to be treated as such.

Jesus christ, whats wrong with you people? Toadmeat is my brother and I know more about this case then any of you. He had no idea of an AIDS benefit and he certainly wouldn't have done the performance if he had known. Of course its pretty fucking stupid that he didn't know of the benefit, but thats the way it is.

He got kicked out of Ocad for this, and we're trying to get him back in, this will be solved.

I suggest you stop judging so harshly before you know much about the situation.

> Jesus christ, whats wrong with you people?

No, the real question is "What is wrong with a person who commits a criminal act for his own self-gratification?"

> He got kicked out of Ocad for this

If he really is a citizen of Iceland, then he is going to be kicked out of more than OCAD.

You wouldn't be as furious if the performance wouldn't have disrupted an AIDS benefit, i'm trying to tell you that this was not how it was supposed to happen.

He won't get kicked out of Canada, this is not some amateur art school kid, we have alot of people on our side that certainly have more power than some tard on a internet blog.

"You wouldn't be as furious if the performance wouldn't have disrupted an AIDS benefit, i'm trying to tell you that this was not how it was supposed to happen."

Actually, I would be.

"Toadmeat is my brother..."

What's your name? Why should we believe you? Give us some proof, and tell us what you know.

> we have alot of people on our side that certainly have more power than some tard on a internet blog.

Oh, I'm shaking at the power of a bunch of lefty, whiny hasbeens and neverweres at OCAD. You might want to take note of the jail sentences that were handed out to various folks who pied politicians such as Jean Chretien and Ralph Klein. To my mind, pieing a politician is a much lesser crime than perpetrating a terrorist hoax. The only harm in the pieing incidents was to the pride of the respective politicians and possibly some added dry-cleaning bills. On the other hand, a terrorist hoax is a crime against society at large.

Irrational fear of possible terrorist attacks is a serious enough problem without having a self-absorbed, Nazi-loving "art student" wanker contributing to the problem by staging terrorist hoaxes. The sooner he's on a plane back to Iceland, the better.

No you wouldn't, that i'm sure of.

My name is Thordur Ingi Jonsson, my myspace: www.myspace.com/thordur

heres my brothers myspace: http://www.myspace.com/ethnicstereotype

currently, OCAD teachers are defending him and are speaking to the principal. We have lawyers, the icelandic embassy, etc etc helping us.

I'm sorry if toadmeat calling Adolf Hitler one of his favourite artists and WTC a piece of art offended you, of course he's not serious. Whatever happened to political incorrectness?

Oh, now he's "nazi loving"?

Jeez, americans are so sensitive. Bad europeans with their art..

What's wrong with us... man you are something else. Just tell your brother to turn himself in. Never mind the fund raiser, the pipe, Hitler, WTC, shitty videos, "the art" and solving anything. He's going to have a whole new perspective of this world, and that's a good thing, for us.
I suggest you get a reality check bro.
He's effed, period.
Now let us move on to the next piece of pathetic news.

I'm having fun mentally transplanting the situation into the US. I can't see the "of course he's not serious!" excuse flying there!

this is a joke, it's not like anyone got hurt or as if he skinnned a cat alive. he angered a bunch of self-satisfying yuppies at the rom, big fucking deal. get over it wannabe vigilantes.

a testament to our paranoia; we want to deport someone who's art project went wrong.

O rly?

Whether this is art or not, or a daring example of recontextualization, or a pathetic, self-indgulgent stunt is irrelevant. Plating a hoax bomb is a crime.

Hear hear, Paranoid.
O rly at JacobPar btw.

Adams,
Bank robbers who end up killing someone during a bungled robbery still commit murder and therefore go to jail for murder, because that person is still dead in the end.

Reconsidering the "it's not a bomb, it's only a sculpture of a bomb" argument:

An artist created a performance piece around the committing of an illegal act. The "oh, but it's art!" argument didn't fly with cat skinning, it wouldn't fly with murder, it wouldn't fly with (insert felony here). I can't imagine successfully arguing ignorance of the laws regarding bomb threats in this case ? the same thing's illegal in Iceland, and many other jurisdictions in the world.

Haha what?
Yeah, I know.
If you kill someone, you go to jail. In North America, I think you get raped alot, am I right?

> Oh, now he's "nazi loving"?
> Jeez, americans are so sensitive. Bad europeans with their art.

Oh yeah, I'm sure that calling Adolf Hitler one of his favourite artists would go over very well in European countries like Germany or Poland. In Germany, expressing admiration for Hitler might well get you arrested.

And perpetrating a terrorist hoax would no doubt be accepted without question in Britain and Spain. I expect the reality is this hoax would get toadmeat arrested in any of Britain, France, Spain, Italy or Germany. Hell, in Britain he might well be shot dead on sight.

BTW, I'm not an American.

Definitely, its illegal in Iceland.
But we wouldn't send people to jail, kick them out of a school that was hard work getting into, and we certainly wouldn't deport them.

North America is paranoid (understandibly though) when it comes to terrorism.

I'm just as pissed off at the AIDS benefit being canceled as you are, but what i'm trying to fit into your little brains is that IT WAS A FUCKING MISTAKE.

Here's the first interview with the perpetrator.

My interpretation of this event is that this is a statement and a hate crime against AIDS patients. Too much planning went into this. Surely this person knew there was an AIDS funtion. Why the ROM and why that night if not to spefically interrupt this event?

The only crime here is against common sense. The so-called artists should be sentenced to attempt the same 'piece' in Boston, and see the reaction they'd get there.

If you pretend to kill people (say, by planting a fake bomb at museum) you might just end up in that same prison.

Scratch that though, we would send them to jail, but no one would get raped and would probably be bailed out the next day.

Lets see how it goes. All in good time

Just read the interview, it explains everything.

Your rape comment is out of line. This reminds of when I stupidly used to walk home alone at night through alleys and some guy came up to me and put his arm around me and I let him all the way down the alley because I was terrified of being raped. So I played nice until we came up other pedestrians. He was laughing and thought it was funny. I wasn't physically hurt but the damage was done.

I just read the interview, here's what I take away from it... your brother is a pseudo-artist who had some half-baked idea for an art project that he clearly didn't think through (improvising as he went along). He created a major public disturbance and now expects to be forgiven because it was a "mistake".

Sorry, but this whole fiasco is a far cry from what Duchamp achieved a century ago.

I agree, he definitely didn't think it through. I don't understand how he didn't know about the AIDS event.
And yeah, he expects to be forgiven because it was a mistake. We're ready to pay all fines and bail him from prison, what i'm asking is that you shouldn't judge harshly on him.

The rape comment was out of line, I was just pissed off.

Peace, Thordur the icelandic guy

Judging by the comments in this thread, most of you should stick to discussing this as a legal matter!

I wouldn't want to be in this guys shoes, but I can sympathize with his intent. Perhaps he could have thought of a more subtle way to execute the work.. I hope he enjoys his 15 seconds of fame considering the trouble he is in.

Having read his story, I now feel compelled to judge him even more harshly, at least in the realm of intelligence. Unbeleivable!

"And yeah, he expects to be forgiven because it was a mistake."

Expects! What entitlement!

I can't imagine who _wouldn't_ have the foresight to brainstorm all possible outcomes under these circumstances. How smug must one be to envision that everything will go 100% according to plan?

> Just read the interview, it explains everything.

From the interview:

> Worried that there was a possibility of legal action, he hadn't told his professors
> about the piece until the night it was installed.

Clearly he possessed a guilty mind in that he was aware that he might be breaking the law. So he can't claim ignorance of the law. His only defence is that "I'm (allegedly) an artist and hence I am entitled to break the law as I see fit." By that reasoning, I am entitled to blow OCAD into teeny, tiny bits as performance art.

BTW Adams, if you had prior knowledge of this "installation" and there is an evidence trail such as emails between you and your brother that would establish such prior knowledge, you might find yourself charged with conspiracy. Then you could find out for yourself if you might be raped in a Canadian prison.

Sympathize with his intent? He intended to call the police without cause. That we can all agree with. He wanted to make a scene with a fake emergency. That's so dangerous for so many reasons. There's no mistake about it.

"Definitely, its illegal in Iceland.
But we wouldn't send people to jail, kick them out of a school that was hard work getting into, and we certainly wouldn't deport them."

Wait, so what would you do?

Haha i'm sure you won't send a 14 year old to prison.

I just received this e-mail:

"Thursday, 29 November 2007 ? 5:00 p.m.

STATEMENT BY CHAIR OF THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS, J. ANTHONY CALDWELL, AND PRESIDENT, SARA DIAMOND, ONTARIO COLLEGE OF ART & DESIGN

It has been brought to our attention that a student of the Ontario College of Art & Design (OCAD) may have been involved in an incident that occurred at the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) last evening in which a bomb threat hoax caused the evacuation of the building and the cancellation of a major fundraising event by the Canadian Foundation for Aids Research (CANFAR).

This incident at the ROM was totally unacceptable and is in no way condoned by OCAD. The university has taken this matter very seriously and is conducting a full and thorough investigation in cooperation with the police. The incident at the ROM was not part of any OCAD assignment or course. The student involved has been suspended from the university.

The faculty involved have been fully cooperative and have been suspended with pay pending the outcome of the investigation.

On learning of the possible involvement of an OCAD student in the ROM incident, the President of OCAD, Sara Diamond, immediately contacted both the ROM and CANFAR to express OCAD?s deep concern and offer apologies on behalf of the institution."

I do wonder why faculty were suspended if it was not part of any class assignment.

He said this was a final project for a class in the TOist interview, so I think OCAD is just sneaking by since they didn't actually assign the idea.

I find it ironic that we're having a discussion on what is or what isn't art in regards to a situation at the ROM, a building that looks like a glass building fell on it and no one bothered to pick up the shards.

Lock the immature, pretentious, attention-starved "artist" away for what was done at the ROM.

And not just Daniel Libeskind, also the person who planted the fake bomb.

I just looked at his MySpace... Heroes: "Anyone who has confidence enough in his own beliefs and views that he's willing to climb a bell tower with a riffle"

This guy just keeps on hitting the high scores. Perhaps celebrating mass murderers seemed funny at some point, although frankly I can't see the context in which that would be funny, but this guy deserves more than just a mischief fine, he deserves - and the general public deserves - a serious investigation and psychiatric examination.

When students hand in "assignment" stories about them shooting up the school, sometimes it means more than that they get too many ideas from TV. Someone who celebrates genocide, terrorism, random serial killings and then pulls shit like this has a LOT of 'splaining to do, and I don't mean asking about his artistic technique.

My sister went to OCAD for a semester and dropped out.
(She also has a university science degree) She never fit in there. She said that the teachers never directly told students to pull these types of stunts, but students who were out there were admired for it. It's definately an OCAD culture. Why is it that every couple of years someone from OCAD does a crazy stunt? Other schools have art programs too.

> Haha i'm sure you won't send a 14 year old to prison.

No, as a 14 year old you won't be sent to prison here; but if you are a resident of Canada and had prior knowledge of this event, you should expect a visit from the police. Even if you are a resident of Iceland and had prior knowledge, you might receive a visit from the Icelandic police.

In the meantime, your loyalty to your brother is admirable, but somewhat childish. Your brother has dug himself into a deep, deep hole and there is nothing you can say to change that sad fact.

Rick: Now that's funny :P

From the OCAD statement:

"The incident at the ROM was not part of any OCAD assignment or course... The faculty involved have been fully cooperative and have been suspended with pay..."

Does not compute!

Plus, Jonsson says it was his final project for OCAD.

Lies abound.

Adams:

Your myspace says you're 18 years old, and now you're claiming to be a minor (14 years old). Your credibility is vanishing...

I'm sure OCAD wants to distance itself from this as much as possible. Pathetic.

Just about as pathetic as some of the comments on here and nearly as stupid as not thinking through what could've been an interesting art project.

I can't understand why people get so hateful. To me, it's fairly easy to separate an act, the perpetrator, the victim and the viewers.

He did something stupid, he should be charged. He was probably aware that he was going to get in trouble for this and it's a logical conclusion to this piece.

That being said, there was no victim. No one got hurt; people were inconvenienced. That doesn't make it not criminal but it certainly doesn't deserve the level of disgust I've seen displayed on this board. The piece should be discussed and then dismissed as a failure.

I do think he touched a nerve and people react instinctively to that. On that level, the piece was successful.

On a completely unrelated note, I can remember talking with this guy through e-mail when he was looking for a place to live.

Now THAT would've been interesting.

Hear hear Rick!

This is the same ROM that is trying to block hot-dog vendors from plying their trade outside the entrance.

http://spacing.ca/wire/?p=2531

I'm 18 year old on myspace because they don't allow minors for some reason.

Why does the brother of Toadmeat keep posting here? Doesn't he have more pressing things to do, rather than leaving juvenile comments that further implicate his brother? Shouldn't he be at Toadmeat's side, talking with the authorities? Or alternately, at Toadmeat's safe-house, planning his escape back to Iceland? Priorities, man.

Wow, Japhet said it best.
Stop being so hateful..

We're in two different countries.

Think much?

> Lock the immature, pretentious, attention-starved "artist" away for what was done at the ROM.

While I'm sympathetic to this idea, Libeskind merely violated many people's concept of "good taste", which is only a crime in a figurative sense. And it is always possible that in a couple of decades the detractors may warm to Libeskind's design (either that or they will die off eventually). In a couple of decades, no one will remember toadmeat and if they do, they will remember him as a pathetic loser who committed criminal acts and tried to pass it off as "art".

Japhet,
There was a victim here: CANFAR
Drivel about recontextualization cost this charity so much money.

Elle: That's the kids these days for ya... they just can't get enough blogTO. You should hear the way the elementary school kids translate the RSS feed into playground songs based on the Morning Brew each day, it's very creative. And I recently heard of an east-side middle school having to ban iPod Touches in classrooms 'cause students won't stop listening to the podcasts on headphones.

j/k, Definitely appreciating your input, Adams.

Notice that Adams is busy trying to delete/erase/pulverize anything incriminating since R. A, Hicks mentioned conspiracy to him at 6:21 pm?
Might as well throw your PC into a lake and it won't help a bit.
One by one your "friends", V.I.P.'s, embassy, etc. would be deserting you toadmeat. Funny that you'd jumped right into the system you despised so much. Enjoy the ride

I have to say that all the time the ROM was being built I hated it. But now I really love it. I love the expansive sidewalk. It really adds to the streetscape.

I think CA's got a good point there... CANFAR may have been an unintentional victim, but you could fake any emergency, terrorize the wrong people the wrong way, and wind up with any number or form of unintentional victims. Hence it being treated as a more serious crime than simply disrupting a museum's operations and closing a public area, wasting police resources, frightening people... although there are certainly victims to be found in those facets too.

Sorry for trying to defend my own brother, wow.

Haha! Nice one, Brother of Toadmeat. I do in fact "think much", but apparently you and your Icelandic brethren don't.

Somewhere out there, Bjork is gently weeping to herself.

Adams:

Ask yourself the question, and answer with honesty... would you be defending his actions if he were not your brother?

You know what would be a good piece of art?
Showing contrast in this way:
Typically it's not considered bad to be sitting in a room by yourself, but when you're IN JAIL it is.
It's funny how in different contexts the same scenario gets looked at in two different ways.

First of all Thordur, calm down. It's important we treat this delicately and professionally.

The argument with this art piece is not whether or not it is illegal. It obviously entailed some criminal mischief that will likely cause Thorarinn some trouble. However, is it not the nature of post-modern art to question authority and perspective? Can you not see now that you are all a part of the art piece by your very reactions? Think carefully about what you are getting so worked up over: some pieces of wood and some art-school videos. The "bomb" in this case is public reaction. This sculpture was not a bomb until we all treated it like one.

How can society progress without questioning our actions?

He shows NO REMORSE in the TV interview he gave with CityTV.

http://www.citynews.ca/news/features_17232.aspx?&categoryurl=http://www.citynews.ca/news/features_691.aspx

Hey Rick, well put. But reality is Ontario (canadian) jails are overcrowded, quote "Because of overwcrowding, toilets often back up, causing sewage to flood through cells of prisoners forced to sleep on floors near toilets"
Have that recontextualized toadmeat.

I'm not an artist, I'm not his brother and I'm certainly not defending OCAD but I take umbrage at people's bald ignorance when it comes to art. It doesn't mean I'm defending him but I'm not going to tag along with some witch-hunt and call for his head.

Hoping someone gets raped in prison is just as disturbing as cavalierly calling in a bomb threat if not more so.

There is nothing on the ROM's website that says they were renting out the place for a charity event. How could he have known? He isn't one of Toronto's glitterati.

http://www.rom.on.ca/visit/calendar/index.php?cat_ids%5B%5D=8&audience_ids%5B%5D=9&start_date=2007-11-01&end_date=2007-11-31&submit=Search&ref=searchresult

D,
Using your argument you can say "why get worked up over rape?" It's just a penis inside a vagina. Seriously.
Everything has a context. Big deal. Why cause a bomb threat to point that out?

> He did something stupid, he should be charged. He was probably aware that he was going
> to get in trouble for this and it's a logical conclusion to this piece.

No, he didn't do something stupid; he did something malicious. He knew that he probably was breaking the law and did it regardless of any concerns regarding the legality of the act.

> That being said, there was no victim. No one got hurt; people were inconvenienced. That
> doesn't make it not criminal but it certainly doesn't deserve the level of disgust I've seen
> displayed on this board. The piece should be discussed and then dismissed as a failure.

We are all victims. A response to 9/11 and the terrorist bombings in Bali, Madrid and London has been irrational fear and that fear has fed into a wellspring of latent fascism. Helping to stoke society's fears of possible terrorist acts does not do any of us any good, unless you actually espouse fascism.

Artists would like to think that they have the power to persuade and provoke. If that conceit has any truth to it, then the consequence is that that power should be used responsibly. Provoking simply for the sake of provoking is an empty, meaningless act.

Japhet, I most definitely agree. I'm sure everyone with / supporting CANFAR would be horrified at the notion that people "hope he gets AIDS" and the same goes for rape and whatever other sort of disproportional suffering to be exacted for the purposes of revenge. Beyond proper punishment and ensuring that this guy's not the lunatic that he's gone to so much work around the web to make himself seem, he mostly just deserves to be ignored and forgotten.

CANFAR is not a victim.

An organization cannot be a victim. A person can be a victim. CANFAR undoubtedly suffered a setback but it remains to be seen whether they lost money or not. I have no idea what their arrangement with the ROM was.

Again, when I say this, I'm not EXCUSING Thorarinn. I'm merely pointing out that we don't know how this affected CANFAR's operations.

Stop making assumptions about CANFAR, the ROM, Thorarinn and art in general.

Who would have thought? A bomb threat causes a reaction from the public! What's next? Going outside in the rain leads to getting wet? Would that be art? No, because it's obvious to anyone who has ever had any experience with rain. Same here. This isn't "new" or "different" it's obvious.

The point is that we're not getting "worked up" about the art. We're getting worked up about the streets being shut down, part of the museum being evacuated, the fundraiser being disrupted, and the police being distracted by this. Make all the horrible "art" you want, just don't disrupt people while doing it. I doubt Michaelangelo grabbed people on the street and screamed "THIS IS ART! LOOK AT MY ART!" and then dragged them into it. He just created it and people came and enjoyed it.

When did doing that go out of style?

D,
Him not knowing about CANFAR is not the point.
That's like throwing a boulder over an balcony and being surprised that you killed a person who happened to be walking by. It's negligence. Why do something so stupid?

No, CA, it's not like throwing a boulder over a balcony. It's worse. If you throw a boulder you MAY hit someone, but you may not.

Planting a fake bomb will DEFINITELY cause commotion as soon as it is discovered. There's no doubt about it. There's a 100% chance of causing trouble, rather than just a slight chance.

> Hoping someone gets raped in prison is just as disturbing as cavalierly calling in a bomb
> threat if not more so.

You should try learning to read. The person who brought up the topic of getting raped in prison was toadmeat's alleged brother Adams.

I believe a spokesperson for CANFAR said on CTV that they lost 1/3 of the money expected for the year (I could have misheard)

from CTV's website:
"2,000 people were expected to attend the event, for which tickets cost $600 apiece"
This certainly affected CANFAR

>No, he didn't do something stupid; he did something >malicious. He knew that he probably was breaking the law >and did it regardless of any concerns regarding the >legality of the act.

You don't know whether he did it maliciously or not. You're painting him with a rather malevolent brush. I don't know the guy but nothing he's been quoted on indicates a desire for chaos or social disorder, much less mutually-assured destruction.

>We are all victims. A response to 9/11 and the terrorist >bombings in Bali, Madrid and London has been irrational >fear and that fear has fed into a wellspring of latent >fascism. Helping to stoke society's fears of possible >terrorist acts does not do any of us any good, unless you >actually espouse fascism.

Wow, you should go work for CNN. I am not a victim and I'm sure I'd have a few folks agreeing with me on that count. Global terrorism is often used as an excuse to forward already-planned fascist agendas. There's a difference between creating an art piece and putting out propaganda.

What's that difference, you ask? An explanation and some accountability at the conclusion of the piece. The piece failed, not because the idea was bad, but because he didn't do his research and go balls-out to make his point.

You are indeed correct that art is about persuasion and provocation and that this potential power requires responsibility.

What is is disturbing is your implication that art should not do that. This not only shows a complete lack of understanding when it comes to the history of the world but it paints your hopes for the future in a less-than-flattering light.

What do you want out of art?

i cant believe this fucktard said he didnt consider that it wouldnt be taken seriously or that police resources taken up by this idiotic stunt couldnt have been used elsewhere. someone should follow this ass around with a knife and a shirt that says "i am not going to kill you" and see how artistic he thinks it is.

ever since they determined some of those people from the davidian cult were canadian a few years back, i've lost complete confidence in our society's common sense...and this right-hemisphere-only hack dropped us down one more notch.

Actually, there are quite a few people besides his brother who brought up the idea of him getting raped in prison.

The difference is they wanted it to happen and his brother was joking.

This is exactly the type of judgmental, knee-jerk reaction, that this art piece is responding to. 9/11 has often been critiqued as an art piece. It is not the horrific events of 9/11 but rather your understanding of art that needs to be questioned. Violence, mayhem, fear...are they not also part of the human experience?

Post-modern art is reliant on intention.

Of course it affected CANFAR. As I said before, we don't know HOW it affected CANFAR. There are no figures yet.

I'd rather not keep harping on it, but "nothing he's been quoted on indicates a desire for chaos or social disorder" ?

"FAVOURITES: artist or designer:
Bosch, Odd Nerdrum, Yoshimoto Nara, de Chirico, Steinunn Thorarinsdottir, Marcel Dzama, Adolph Hitler, Fracis Bacon, Hugleikur Dagsson

work of art:
the destruction of the World Trade Centres

author or poet:
Halldor Laxness, George Saunders, Gunnlaugur ormstunga. But honestly...books are meant to be burned"

and

"General Interests: General motorbiking, flirting with the principal?s daughter and setting fires

Heroes: Anyone who has confidence enough in his own beliefs and views that he's willing to climb a bell tower with a riffle"

"Make all the horrible "art" you want, just don't disrupt people while doing it. I doubt Michaelangelo grabbed people on the street and screamed "THIS IS ART! LOOK AT MY ART!" and then dragged them into it. He just created it and people came and enjoyed it."

You sound like my mum wondering why artists don't paint like they used to.

When did doing that go out of style?

J: he shows NO REMORSE in the TV interview he gave with CityTV.

Please explain what you mean.

I'm am so lucky that I live in my bubble away from the "art" world. 9/11 as an art piece? How many drugs does a person have to do to become this desensitized?

I would hesitate to read his "favorites" at face value.

They're still statements he's made, if he'd like to explain that it's just him finding millions of people dying uproariously funny and those comments should be ignored, I'm all ears. Why would you give him the benefit of the doubt, he can clearly speak for himself and I think it's a question he definitely needs to answer.

> You don't know whether he did it maliciously or not.

Yes, I do. In the interview with torontoist.com, he effectively admitted to a guilty mind. He didn't tell his prof about the planned event beforehand because he suspected that it was an illegal act. Stupidity is the result of failing to anticipate consequences; maliciousness is the result of anticipating consequences but ignoring those possible consequences.

> What do you want out of art?

Not empty, self-indulgent acts of criminality that serve the purposes of fascism.

I think most post-modern art is simply a scam perpetrated by talentless hacks who attempt to use theories that are not just esoteric but in fact devoid of meaning in order to justify their supposed work.

I can say for sure that he doesn't find 9/11 uproariously funny, talk to Uwe Boll about that :)

I can ask him if you're really that interested in it.

He got RCMP on his side when he said that cops waste time all the time, meaning that's ok that they wasted time, again, to the bomb response. They just didn't understand his artistic goal, being cops and all you know. But he'll explain that to them so everyone can go back to their routines.
Toadmeat, among many things you are going to reevaluate, knowing when to STFU will be up there on your long list. Too late for your lawyer to tell you that now, easy money for him though.

This is my issue with many things artists say when they're in situations like this.

If he was really serious about what he was doing, he would've erased all traces of his online persona and created a new one. You can't make jokes about the WTC and do a piece like this.

Again, it points to him not thinking this through. He's not very good.

This is an email a friend of mine sent discussing this event:

Have you ever heard of Jorge Louis Borges? he's a famous author in the magic realism style from the 40's.

One of his most famous stories is about a secret cabal of artists who conspire to replace the real world with an artificial one of their own devising. They begin by composing a single volume of an encyclopedia and placing it in an inconspicuous place in a library. The encyclopedia details facts and figures from an imaginary nation called Tlon (pron. tloon) on an imaginary world called Orbis Tertius. This encyclopedia is found by scholars. No one can figgure out where it came from or what its supposed to mean. Over time more and more artifacts from Tlon are placed in various locations around the world where they are found, and over time a Tlon mythology evolves, and Tlon is accepted as an actual place that existed in antiquity or otherwise far away. Once the myth is in place, its creators find that reality has been waiting for such a creation, and willingly replaces itself with the Tlon mythology, so that decades after the whole thing began, the world has become Orbis Tertius and Earth has been relegated to mythology.

He also wrote a short story in which people undertake to create the most accurate map of the earth ever devised. The composition of this map continues to the point that the map is so large and holds so much information that its corners stretch to the corners of the world, and the world is completely covered by it.

This piece reminds me of those stories, with the line between creation and environment being blurred into obscurity and the artists dream being used by reality to replace itself.

I find the most interesting part of this is how everyone is reacting. It is rather unfortunate that a fund raiser was canceled, yes, but he says that himself. I find it so intriguing how much of an uproar a sculpture can cause. How society has pounded so much anxiety and fear over a symbol. I won't lie and say that I wouldn't be frightened by a package labeled "not a bomb", because I would. I am affected by the media�s swill, just like everyone else. This sort of thing should make us stop and really think about the way we react to a sculpture. It�s very fascinating that a piece of art can do this.

Also, awesome on the "police waste so much time anyways" comment.

> Actually, there are quite a few people besides his brother who brought up the
> idea of him getting raped in prison.

That is a bald-faced lie. This is typical of pseudo-artists. When they can't justify themselves or their work, they just make up piffle.

Hicks, that's not malicious. That's willfully ignorant and foolish.

"> What do you want out of art?

Not empty, self-indulgent acts of criminality that serve the purposes of fascism.

I think most post-modern art is simply a scam perpetrated by talentless hacks who attempt to use theories that are not just esoteric but in fact devoid of meaning in order to justify their supposed work."

You didn't answer my question. I happen to think that a lot of postmodern art is played out and has been done to death.

I'm trying to find out whether you agree with the idea that art can also provoke or promote discussion of current issues? I'm NOT saying this particular piece is good art but I appreciate the idea behind it and I'm wondering if you do too.

And now you bring Borges into the toadmeat effed world ... omfg. WTF you think are? Tell me about "artist dreams" being blurred by reality a few days from now. Let's see how artistic you feel.

When I was in NYC around New Years the cops had machine guns and dogs in the subway. They don't do this to perpetuate an agenda. They were keeping people safe, because the city had an attack. People are afraid of dying not symbols. Gee, B, I hope you're 40,000 grand in the hole "learning" this garbage.
I live in the area. I wasn't in on this joke.
B, what if someone left a package that looked like a bomb on your doorstep, would you sit down next to it and contemplate what your emotions meant and how society has shaped those emotions.
Give me a break.

I agree with R.A. Hicks. No one said they wanted him raped in jail. Is this the same "artist" logic that thinks it's okay to put fake bombs around the city? Obviously so.
OCAD should really be thoroughly investigated. There's just too many of these "incidents."

Tomorrow at OCAD they're all going to be sitting with their big glazed eyes mumbling "it's just so deep."

I'm not an artist and I would appreciate it if you don't label me as such.

There were comments made on his YouTube profile as well as a response video.

"OCAD should really be thoroughly investigated. There's just too many of these "incidents."

CA, whom should we investigate and for what purpose? Should some cops just hang out around OCAD, waiting for some sign of illegal activity? You really don't understand what investigations are all about, do you?

And please stop using talking about logic. You would be better off if you stopped worrying about what was logical or illogical and just said what you meant.

Logic is the study of principles and criteria of valid inference and demonstration. I wouldn't bother thinking too deeply about it.

It's bad enough that this incident has dragged the good names Duchamp and Magritte through the mud, but now Borges, too? Please, you pseuds really don't know what you're talking about.

In defense of Duchamp, at least, let me say this... His readymades (which, apparently were the inspiration here) were intended as a provocation, true enough. But the object of the provocation was the art establishment. He was mocking the whole idea of art and how one decides what is art and what isn't. He wasn't harming anyone outside of the art establishment and he certainly wasn't stupid enough to think that calling in a bomb threat could be considered art.

To all the people who are defending toadmeat and saying "If you don't like, you just don't understand art", consider this... This guy is ripping of the ideas of an artist from a hundred years ago. How exactly is that avant-garde? Is the fact he's totally missed the point of the ready-made somehow cutting edge?

Japhet, I'm not too familiar with investigations. But you have to admit the school is known for cat skinning and jello puke "performance art" while other schools are known for their business school, teachers college, animation program, etc. Do students create these performances in a vacuum? I don't think so. Teachers should be firm that criminal acts are not art no matter what statement is made. That's just civil responsibility after so many incidents

> I appreciate the idea behind it and I'm wondering if you do too.

I think the idea beyond this act is juvenile and totally derivative. The rethinking of perspective that occurred in the 20th century essentially started with Einstein's Theory of Special Relativity that was published in 1905. Given that the whole idea has been beat to death for a century now, it is not at all surprising that Toadmeat doesn't have anything new to say about it.

Resorting to criminal acts in order to try to find something "new" or "provocative" to say is not convincing; it's lazy.

> I'm trying to find out whether you agree with the idea that art can also provoke or
> promote discussion of current issues?

In the early part of the 20th century, artists had all kinds of fond hopes of being able to change society through their artistic expression. Those artists had the advantage of having lots of new territory to explore. Nonetheless, their hopes were not just dashed, but smashed by Stalin and Hitler and the ugly realities of the 20th century.

I think most conceptual art today is ignored for the very good reason that it's totally irrelevant. The problem with most artists today is that they, like many "intellectuals", have a very limited breadth of knowledge. A century ago, it was far easier for artists to benefit from cross-pollination with other disciplines. I think that there is the possibility of an artist coming along with a new, fresh perspective, but I think such individuals need to look for inspiration outside of the narrow confines of the art world as it exists today. Otherwise, it will just be more of the same old, derivative piffle.

Thanks for the discussion, Japhet. Sorry about calling you an artist. But I think I'm not going to give this anymore thought and move on with my life.
I just hoped I don't get mugged on the way to work tomorrow by someone trying to make a statement ;-)

"The faculty involved have been fully cooperative and have been suspended with pay" = student pulls crazy stunt, teacher gets paid vacation. Fostering this stuff can pay off pretty directly at times..

R.A. Hicks, your last comment is incredibly insightful.

> R.A. Hicks, your last comment is incredibly insightful.

Maybe, but I very much doubt that it's anything that hasn't been said before. :-)

OCAD should do the right thing and donate back the money the charity loses.

(I'm not saying they're responsible, but they won't get that money back from Thorrarin and the charity shouldn't be the one to suffer.)

Before I log out and wait for better news, I want to quote a line from a movie, cause i was thinking how someone could see 911 as a work of art, or the ROM's "not a bomb" or burned books, Bosnia, Hitler, context... and this movie line came to my head. I'm glad that I'm a layman and don't see the world as some people do.

From Seven: "I've been trying to figure something in my head, and maybe you can help me out, yeah? When a person is insane, as you clearly are, do you know that you're insane? Maybe you're just sitting around, reading "Guns and Ammo", masturbating in your own feces, do you just stop and go, "Wow! It is amazing how fucking crazy I really am!"? Yeah. Do you guys do that? "

Life could be so easy, but why we complicate it so much?

It's very unfortunate that the AIDS benefit was cancelled because his idea clearly has no correlation with destroying the fundraiser, and I think it's obvious he feels remorse about how his piece affected it.

I personally think it's a very interesting commentary on the state of terroism in North America and what it is doing to us. Creating a specific event that triggers that exact fear draws our attention to the fact that we are totally controlled by it. Anything done in contradiction to the collective national identity is seen as a direct threat, which is unreasonable. I understand if you cannot get behind the sculpture as an art piece- that is a personal opinion, however, but at least open yourself up for moment to the fact that this event is thought provoking and challenges the reality we live in as of late.

Sorry, but this "art piece" is not thought-provoking, nor does it "challenge the reality we live in". If someone had placed a fake bomb in front of the ROM twenty years ago, then phoned in a bomb threat, we would have seen the same reaction. None of this has anything to do with terrorism - bomb threats have always been taken seriously.

Please explain how this "challenges reality".

According to 680news, Jonsson surrendered to police just after 8pm tonight (no web link yet).

rabble rabble rabble rabble rabble

To A,

The collective reaction to 9/11 was fear and a survival instinct kicks in. (And legitimately so) There's nothing wrong with being afraid of guns, terrorism, things that look like bombs, men in trench coats in dark parks. It's same reason you don't touch a hot stove twice. You learn to protect yourself in order to survive. Ignoring this instinct could cost you your life. I'm not a fear mongerer but I try to be a cautious person. Do you cover up your ATM pin number? If so, why? Has society shaped you into think you're going to be robbed if you don't? Well, stand up against society, don't protect your pin number!! Anyone who has actually experienced war or trauma, would never sit there trying to "recontexualize" it, they would be trying to make sure it didn't happen to them again.
It is a luxury to sit back and dream up this BS. It really is. The truth is the glittery jetset who didn't attend the CANFAR event are more socially aware than anyone who sees value in a fake bomb scare.

To Japhet,

This has been irking me all night. You said:

"And please stop using talking about logic. You would be better off if you stopped worrying about what was logical or illogical and just said what you meant.

Logic is the study of principles and criteria of valid inference and demonstration. I wouldn't bother thinking too deeply about it."

- Why would someone ignore logic? Illogical arguments are lazy drivel. Without logic you have idiots who call in bomb threats because they don't think through the consequences.
I've always said what I meant. Why wouldn't I? I'm posting anonymously on a BLOG. Logic would tell you that to do so otherwise is pointless.

Toronto Star: "Thorarinn Ingi Jonsson, 24, of Toronto faces one count of common nuisance and mischief interference with property."

http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/280969

good article. the oftentimes criptic comments this issue has triggered by the readers gives me much to consider.

I finally watched the CityTV interview with this sorry wanker. He again admits in this interview that he knew that he was about to break the Criminal Code. OCAD should expel him so that his student visa can be revoked and he can be deported back to Iceland. Will recontextualizing a law-breaking wanker by deporting him back to Iceland change his metaphysical state to that of an artist? When pigs can fly.

And if OCAD chooses not to expel him, people who are disgusted by his contemptuous display of willful disregard for the rights of others should write to their local MPP suggesting that given OCAD's record of encouraging criminal activity in the name of "art", it is time to end public funding of this institution. If OCAD wants to continue operating on its own dime, that is their right; but taxpayers should not be expected to fund idiots trying to pass off hoax terrorist attacks as "art".

I go to OCAD, and I didn't even hear about this until earlier tonight when someone from CTV interviewed me about it. After that I went online and did as much research on the case as I could.

It was twice as weird because I work in the AV department at school and used to see him come in all the time.

One of my friends pointed out that both his parents are rather famous artists back in Iceland and he thinks he used this as a publicity stunt to impress/follow in there footsteps/have something to show when he returns to Iceland living under the shadow of his parents.

I don't know how un/true this may be. But what I did find weird was about an hour after all this went down at the ROM, i was taking down a presentation in the lecture theatre when everyone at OCAD had to evacuate due to a 'gas leak' . I never ended up finding out if that was true or not, but it's just weird that they happened so close together.

CA:

these things do not happen at ocad "every couple of years"
--get your facts straight

i am appalled that the number one discussion EVER on blogto has been this subject-especially the virulity of the comments

dudes, there is major doodoo going on in the world to get riled/passionate about--this ain't one of them

and as far as the this isn't art bag, i know art when i see it--if you people gave talented artists of this city HALF the attention as this dude...beyond belief

"I think the idea beyond this act is juvenile and totally derivative. The rethinking of perspective that occurred in the 20th century essentially started with Einstein's Theory of Special Relativity that was published in 1905. Given that the whole idea has been beat to death for a century now, it is not at all surprising that Toadmeat doesn't have anything new to say about it."

Agreed. It's nothing new and it's been done better. Why then does it still provoke the same reaction from the public? I think it needs to happen more often until we, as a society, can dismiss it.

"Resorting to criminal acts in order to try to find something "new" or "provocative" to say is not convincing; it's lazy."

Resorting to criminal acts to be provocative entirely depends on the law being broken and for what end. This particular example did not work that well.

"I think most conceptual art today is ignored for the very good reason that it's totally irrelevant. The problem with most artists today is that they, like many "intellectuals", have a very limited breadth of knowledge. A century ago, it was far easier for artists to benefit from cross-pollination with other disciplines. I think that there is the possibility of an artist coming along with a new, fresh perspective, but I think such individuals need to look for inspiration outside of the narrow confines of the art world as it exists today. Otherwise, it will just be more of the same old, derivative piffle."

Amen. Most, not all, of conceptual art is shit but this has more to do with the law of averages than anything else. Another factor is the incredibly-insular nature of various urbam art scenes. This doesn't mean we should give up hope or completely dismiss the idea behind a piece just because the artist fucked up.

"Why would someone ignore logic? Illogical arguments are lazy drivel. Without logic you have idiots who call in bomb threats because they don't think through the consequences.
I've always said what I meant. Why wouldn't I? I'm posting anonymously on a BLOG. Logic would tell you that to do so otherwise is pointless."

I made that comment about logic precisely because of how stupid it is to apply it in so many circumstances. There is no such thing as "artistic logic." Logic has nothing to do with someone calling in a bomb threat; common sense does.

My concern entirely lies within the misappropriation of words. I would hope that people would understand where words come from and choose accordingly.

By the way, all of the donors have agreed to honor their financial commitments with regards to the charity event itself; this means that they're out the cost of the night which they are going to reschedule.

As much as I dislike OCAD, I don't see why they should be responsible for the cost and to suggest so displays a stunning ignorance of liability.

I'd love to get into the nitty-gritty of CANFAR and whether or not they are actually doing anything worthwhile but that's another argument for another thread. It's also rather late and I don't feel like doing the necessary research.

Thanks everyone for making my day. I had a good time.

Oops, one more thing. I thought this counter-thread running on myOCAD might be of interest to some folks. That is all.

Since I'm not gonna sign up for an OCAD student profile, I guess I'll respond to this here:

"Because, they got free press and a load of people that assume the money donated actually goes into research and treatment for AIDS, instead of just sustaining the organizations throwing the party.

Which is an outright assumtion, but fuck that shit.

People are responding like spoiled children."

When you make an assumPtion, you make an ass out of you and your bratty art-cool peers.

A two-second glance at CANFAR's website makes it clear that they're very loud and upfront about sending 100% of all donations directly into research and awareness.

Japhet, in response to:

"I made that comment about logic precisely because of how stupid it is to apply it in so many circumstances. There is no such thing as "artistic logic." Logic has nothing to do with someone calling in a bomb threat; common sense does."

-- What? Stop putting words in people's mouths. My point was that logically if someone is going to call in a bomb threat, they're going to cause a scene and get arrested. That's where logic comes into calling in a bomb threat. My point was "artistic logic" doesn't make sense.

The defintion of logic is just a process of reasoning. So what misappropriation of words are you talking about? The only person misappropriating information is you. Just because people don't call you on it doesn't mean they don't notice it. Nobody said this fake bomber should be raped in prison on this thread, but you claimed they did. So your arguments don't follow a pattern of logic.

The number of people on the OCAD board trying to justify this act by saying it has artistic merit and saying it's not that bad is scary. Now they're attacking CANFAR?

I wouldn't want to be stuck at a party with those guys.

Is this "art"? Yes/Maybe/No?

TAKE THE POLL:

http://blogto.com/city/2007/11/morning_brew_november_30th_2007/

for every one "jello puke" performance there are hundreds (at least) of presentations done at OCAD by OCAD students which do not harm people or animals or property.

Saying OCAD breeds "this type of environment" because of a few well publicized incidents is in many ways similar to saying that video games breed serial killers...completely ridiculous and unfounded statements! If you cannot provide some real serious research numbers (do you even know the student population at OCAD? what's the % of illegal or "immoral" activity in artwork versus non illegal/immoral artwork in the population?) then these are no less than gross generalizations resulting from the emotions raised by the current and past events.

I would also like to mention that from my personal experience, the myocad board does not represent a significant portion of current OCAD students to be considered a majority, and they cannot (and do not) speak for all of everyone. There are many many current students who do not even have a membership.

Thanks for reading

If the assignment was to show how context changes meaning in art, this is a failure. A bomb hoax has a violent meaning in any context, doesn't it?

As an OCAD student, in may classes at least, there is a lot of emphasis placed trying to have a positive impact with our work.

It doesn't matter what you think of the AIDS benefit. Under no circumstances should "art" pose a threat (imagined or otherwise) to the lives of others.

sorry, that should say "my classes" not "may classes"!

Japhet: If Thorarinn and his family have the money to reimburse the charity, that would be the ideal situation, but not everyone has $100,000 to throw around.

So far, OCAD has acted less than ideal. Suspending teachers that had no advance knowledge and no involvement? Even though they hold little or no responsibility in this matter donating at least some money to canfair will boost their PR significantly.

In fact, they should donate money regardless of if the charity is reimbursed by Thon. It's called good P.R.

Also, claiming that Canfair is a selfish charity is just ignorant.

@CARRIE: No actually, this isn't the busiest thread "ever" on BlogTO - I believe the Stephen Hurlbut leaving CHUM was - you want to see real venom? Don't piss-off ex CityTV employees.

And if you're not aware, this is the "BlogTO" site, not "BlogStuffAboutTheEntireWORLD".

I have decided that my end-of-year charity donation will be given to Canfar (don't get excited, it really is not that much money, but I hope it helps).

I'm quite acquainted with what blogto is--I used to be an art writer for it--and sorry I blinked and missed a thread that had more exitement than this one

I'm well aware that it is not a "blogstuffabouttheentireworld"--my point still stands--the comments such as "he should get aids", "he should be locked up and thrown away the key" are ludicrous and I'm personally shocked that the fanning of angry mob mentality is being promoted on blogto--i expected better

now I am the last person to defend OCAD's honour but I can't abide misinformation

I'm not going to list the numerous inaccuracies regarding this case that have been listed here but i would like to clear up one misunderstanding

the myocad site is a privately owned/privately run forum run by OCAD graduates that the OCAD administration does not approve of and is in NO way connected with--the majority of current students do not even use it let alone the freshmen who are largely aware of its existence--it is a largely unmoderated social networking site and should be viewed as such--with a whopping half dozen people discussing the event--picking their comments apart is irrelevant at best

this Thorarinn Ingi Jonsson was not an active member--his connection to it minimal--its unfortunate that the forum has been opened up to this witch hunt mentality to find further fuel and fodder for an event that has been blown way out of proportion

As for former OCAD student, I am totally unsurprised by this.

In the video interview he came off as completely disconnected from reality.

God, I was very clear about that. I didn't say ANYONE on this board said that. When asked for clarification, I stated where I saw the rape comment. Nobody except his brother talked about prison rape; a couple of people did say they wish he got AIDS.

As to the comments about logic, it's either right or wrong. There aren't different types of logic Maybe I'm missing your sarcasm because this is online?

OCAD should be able to stand behind their student while admitting that he went too far.

This "deny everything and back off" stance is pathetic.

I would say Thorarinn and his family should make some kind of restitution. I don't know if he can afford it but he IS from Iceland and an exchange student which isn't cheap.

I think this was irresponsible and unethical work...however, a role of art is to reflect. So far one whole country has been wrecked by war; thousands killed in another; some of the most cherished rights have gone out the window and another war is on the horizon -- all because of hysteria around terrorism (real and not). Unfortunate as it was, you can call the cancellation of the fundraiser the unintentional finishing stroke -- mirroring how all the hysteria is detracting from the things that do matter.

My sincere apologies, Carrie. I had no idea you were a former writer for this blog. With your lack of punctuation and vaguely patronizing tone, you seriously had me thinking otherwise. I'm sorry I blinked and missed your articles in the past.

Carrie/Elle, It's up to you what makes for exciting discussion, but there's a new thing near the top of the sidebar that lists the posts by comments/views if that's what you mean by busiest.

what are you talking about?

bloto is notorious for its lack of punctuation...hahaha

As a side note to all this. With all the stuff going on about the myOCAD reaction to all this, I don't know if I should point out that myOCAD is far from a real consensus of the entire school.

Actually they're known for being trolls and apathetic. So I wouldn't consider much of what they say to count for what the schools actual student body thinks. From everyone I've talked to, everyone agrees Thorarrin really didn't think this through and wrote this half assed project off as a 'final piece'. I think I heard one guy defend him in a round about way.

Most everyone there can't see any artistic merit in it, and besides that point, they think it's just plain ignorant on his part.

Scratch all that i just said, was reading the wrong article

An art piece that is no needed by the people(why create it?), if he call him self an artist, accept the fact of his false act and take the responsibilities of such.

If one were to talk a lot of these comments at face value one would begin to suspect that people don't have much use for art anymore.

What a clown.

Here is my installation piece:

Toadmeat->Pearson->Iceland

And maybe a couple of @@@'s for the really avante garde

Actually thtat would be an extallation piece

What a truly lame and immature stunt. If this person was truly convinced of his vision then he should have no problems with seeing where is 'art' takes him - following through, if you will, with the consequences that his art project brings. He doesn't even have the guts to live up to it. Take full responsibility for your baby instead of cowering like on in the corner.

"more exitement "

Definately an art student.

I've been to the ROM a bunch over the past year, but hadn't used the normal (new) entrance any of those times. Does anyone know whether they were searching bags immediately upon entrance before (happened to me today) or whether that's something they've started since this?

Torontoist just pointed out local street artist Posterchild's stencil response (on OCAD) to Thorarinn, which can be viewed alongside a written response on Posterchild's Blade Diary. Now that's relevant art!

eff the Ist, and 222nd (two HUNDRED and twenty SECOND) mother fuckers!

The ROM fake bomb is definitely art. But is it a great work of art? That remains to be seen. His artwork is unfinished.

Jonsson's artwork is a Brechtian provocation on the topic of risk and fear in public spaces. It is also simply an artwork about terrorism. Jonsson skillfully generated a great deal of fear in the public and anger in newspaper and television viewers who were able to empathize with his victims. I suspect that the artist himself was suppressing his own empathy for the sake of art. Sheer brilliance.

The people in the museum who thought they might die gruesome deaths during the bomb threat are now able to enter into the relational aesthetics of Jonsson's artwork through the use of performance and the social sculptural processes of public institutions. The museum staff should use the legal system as a metaphor for collective violent retribution and sue him and his famous family for all they are worth, thus critiquing the emotional hegemony of terrorism -- both real and representational. That would be a great intervention, a great gesture, and a great way to complete this collaborative social artwork that has affected all our lives.

The money generated by the "lawsuit" could then be used to fund institutions in our society that promote open government, civilian police oversight, ethically managed surveillance systems and other ways of balancing the recent increase in police control of our public and private lives, be it real, imagined or projected.

(Some small portion of the funds should also be set aside for an art history scholarship at OCAD in the artist's name so that future generations may learn the difference between Duchamp and Magritte.)

There's a new interview with Thorarinn Johnsson in The National Post today.