Guggenheim removes three controversial works from Chinese art exhibition after animal rights protests

Following protests by animal rights organizations, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York has withdrawn three artworks from its upcoming exhibition 'Art and China after 1989: Theater of the World'. The museum cited safety concerns for staff, visitors, and artists as the reason for this decision, noting that explicit threats of violence made the removal necessary. The exhibition is scheduled to open on October 6, 2017. Among the removed works are Peng Yu and Sun Yuan's 2003 video 'Dogs That Cannot Touch Each Other', which shows pit bull dogs harnessed to treadmills in Beijing, and Xu Bing's 1994 video 'A Case Study in Transference', featuring mating pigs tattooed with English and Chinese text. Huang Yong Ping's 1993 installation 'Theater of the World', which includes insects and reptiles in a wooden structure where they prey on each other, was also pulled. Protesters demonstrated outside the museum over the weekend, with both PETA and the ASPCA issuing statements condemning the works. The ASPCA stated opposition to any use of animals in art that causes pain or distress, while PETA criticized those who find entertainment in animal fighting. The Guggenheim expressed dismay at having to withhold artworks, emphasizing its commitment to freedom of expression as a paramount value. The museum acknowledged that the works had previously been exhibited in Asia, Europe, and the United States.