It's been pointed out to me (see commentary) that Vale Mining Co did not fund Salgado during the shooting of his Genesis project (alas, my staff has failed me again). Obviously, I was in complete error in that assertion. Vale helped fund his exhibit at The Natural History Museum.
So let's be clear...
Who owns and has ultimate control of his work? Who could have told the Natural History Museum to go screw themselves should they even consider accepting blood money from such an organization? And finally, who willingly gave his blessing to- and then defended Vale?
Here we have a major name artist and so called environmental activist openly embracing and further advancing and legitimizing this most brazen form of greenwashing. Imagine, had he said- "Not on my watch, not with my work!" His exhibition would have gone on regardless, smaller in size perhaps, or in another venue- but the publicity alone from his refusal to play along with those despoiling and poisoning our planet for greed and profit would have sent a resounding message reverberating worldwide on how individuals and institutions should lead, instead of falter.
Here we have a major name artist and so called environmental activist openly embracing and further advancing and legitimizing this most brazen form of greenwashing. Imagine, had he said- "Not on my watch, not with my work!" His exhibition would have gone on regardless, smaller in size perhaps, or in another venue- but the publicity alone from his refusal to play along with those despoiling and poisoning our planet for greed and profit would have sent a resounding message reverberating worldwide on how individuals and institutions should lead, instead of falter.
2 comments:
I guess he decided it was time to create a retirement fund for himself. It seems over time most Greenpeace execs eventually gave up the good fight to work for the very companies they protested against. Being an eco warrior when you are young and have little to no expenses or responsibilities can be sexy and exciting but eventually real world economics kick in. Looking out for number one takes priority over looking out for several billion.
It would seem that this was a move specifically calculated to afford the biggest prints and the grandest space in the most prestigious of institutions. And you're certainly on target about the ever increasing, blurring of lines between "good and evil," as evidenced with Greenpeace:
http://www.justischase.com/stopwhalessuffering/Greenpeacepage.htm
http://www.herinst.org/sbeder/envpolitics/Greenpeace.html#.VQx-w6478rs
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