National Trust under fire over artwork that looks like ‘pile of poo’
The National Trust has come under fire for hosting an art installation that has been compared to a “big pile of poo”.
The artwork on display at Grade I-listed Tyntesfield House in Somerset features coils of dead organic matter “winding their way around the house”.
Called ‘‘The Uninvited Guest from the Unremembered Past’’, the pieces are made of furniture legs, wool and horsehair, with artist Nicola Turner saying she was inspired by the house’s huge collection of more than 70,000 objects.
“I have been fascinated by seeing the broken items previously owned by the Gibbs Family and in-store at Tyntesfield,” she told the BBC.
“The glimpses beneath the tears in the fabric. The stuffing breaking free. The bowels of the furniture, the layers of materials.”
The National Trust said the artwork is a chance for visitors to “experience something different”.
However, the exhibition has been met with ridicule online, with several people comparing a piece located in a fireplace to a mound of excrement.
One social media commenter said: ‘‘What’s that in the fireplace? It looks like a big pile of poo.’‘
Another said: ‘‘Can’t quite believe it, it’s appalling, whose idea was this?!
‘‘It just looks like poo with legs. I’m not normally critical of art but this is really daft.’‘
Someone else compared the sculpture to a heap of fertiliser, saying: ‘‘Goodness! Anyone would think that Tyntesfield was built on exploiting guano.”
The Victorian-era country house was previously owned by English businessman William Gibbs, whose fortune came from guano.
Another commenter questioned what the artwork has to do with the National Trust and raised concerns that it may put off tourists.
They said: ‘‘I think this exhibition is absolutely disgusting.
‘‘I cannot see what this has to do with the National Trust, Tyntesfield, the Gibbs family or, indeed, anything.
‘‘Why spoil a heritage site with this? I have American visitors coming shortly and this venue is now crossed off the list.
‘‘If it has to be installed, why not put it in a separate building somewhere for people who enjoy this kind of ‘art’.
‘‘Parents are being given warnings that their children might be upset by it…. is this what we want?’‘
Other commentators were more positive about the exhibition, describing it as thought-provoking and “visually stunning”.
One person said: ‘‘It adds something to a staid Victorian environment that provokes thought and is visually stunning.
‘‘I can understand that it is not to everybody’s taste, but people are apparently unwilling to share the Tyntesfield environment with more open-minded visitors.
‘‘It is not permanently damaging anything, but temporarily opening a window on some different perspectives.”
The National Trust said: ‘‘Throughout the house, Turner has created a series of evocative installations made from organic materials, such as wool and horsehair.
‘‘‘These materials hold traces of memory, exploring ways of listening to past, present and future, inviting us to reflect on Tyntesfield’s history.
‘‘As well as some of our grand public rooms, like the Library and Main Hall, you’ll see spaces not normally open to the public, including bedrooms and storerooms.
‘‘The wool and horsehair installations draw influence from the house, weaving around and cascading from objects in Tyntesfield’s historic collection, like furniture, books and ceramics.”
The exhibition is open to visitors until Nov 3, with entry included in the standard admission fee.