The Guggenheim is gearing up for a special exhibit to air for three months beginning Oct 6, 2017 called "Art and China after 1989." If the Guggenheim's plans stay as they are, the exhibit will feature several distinct instances of unmistakable cruelty against animals in the name of art. 
 
 In one example, artists Peng Yu and Sun Yuan tether four pairs of American pit bulls to eight wooden treadmills for a live exhibit. The dogs are faced off against one another, running "at" each other but prevented from touching one another, which is a stressful and frustrating experience for animals trained to fight. The dogs get wearier and wearier, their muscles more and more prominent, and their mouths increasingly salivate. At this live 2003 "performance" in China, a video was recorded, complete with close-up shots of the dogs' frantic, foaming faces. This 7-minute video will be on display at the Guggenheim exhibit (information from NY Times article "Where the Wild Things Are: China’s Art Dreamers at the Guggenheim"). 
 
 In another example, artist Xu Bing stamped meaningless characters all over the bodies of two pigs, a boar and a sow, who were put on display, mating, in a museum exhibit in Beijing in 1994. The Guggenheim will feature the video of that "performance" as well. 
 
 Finally, this exhibit will feature live animals (reptiles, amphibians, insects) that are trapped in a glass enclosure for attendee viewing. According to the NY Times article, "During the three-month exhibition some creatures will be devoured; others may die of fatigue. The big ones will survive. From time to time, a New York City pet shop will replenish the menagerie with new bugs." 
 
 Help us send a message to the Guggenheim by signing this petition. Let them know that animal cruelty holds no place in art in the United States, nor should it anywhere in the world. This assault on animals in the name of art will not be tolerated or supported. 
 
 Guggenheim - please do what you know in your heart is right. Take a stand with our animal cohabitants of this planet, and pull the pieces employing these cruel methods from your upcoming show. 
 
 Guggenheim - tell the world what you stand for: bold, controversial art that breaks barriers and challenges social norms, which does NOT include the promotion of cruelty against innocent beings. 

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– Three controversial pieces at the Guggenheim, all part of a larger exhibit due to open Oct. 6, have been pulled. The "Art and China After 1989: Theater of the World" showing, which will feature about 150 works from Chinese artists, came under fire for a handful of pieces that included live animals or insects, infuriating animal rights activists. Per the New York Times, the NYC museum decided Monday to yank those three works after protests and an online petition, with the museum noting in a statement the removals were necessary "out of concern for the safety of its staff, visitors, and participating artists" due to "explicit and repeated threats of violence." The exhibit with the most pushback: "Dogs That Cannot Touch Each Other," a piece by husband-and-wife team Sun Yuan and Peng Yu that included video of pit bulls trying to charge each other (but not being allowed to make contact). Also yanked: "A Case Study of Transference," which would've shown video of two pigs having sex, and "Theater of the World," which had planned to showcase live insects and reptiles skittering about under a lamp. The museum was initially steadfast about keeping the works, but public outcry escalated, with the Guardian noting even celebrities like Ricky Gervais and Richard Marx were decrying the pieces as cruel to animals. Huang Yong Ping, the artist behind "Theater of the World," tells the Times he hadn't been aware his piece was being pulled until the paper informed him (he had no comment), and Peng simply said, "I don't want to talk about this anymore" when the paper reached her. The museum says it's "dismayed" it had to remove the works. "Freedom of expression has always been and will remain a paramount value of the Guggenheim," its statement notes.