Juanita Bermúdez, the director of the Códice Gallery, stated that the animal
was fed regularly and was only tied up for three hours on one day before it
escaped.[6][7] Vargas
himself refused to comment on the fate of the dog,[7][5] but noted
that no one tried to free the dog, give it food, call the police, or do anything
for the dog.[5] Vargas stated
that the exhibit and the surrounding controversy highlight people's hypocrisy
because no one cares about a dog that starves to death in the street.[5] In an
interview with El Tiempo, Vargas explained that he
was inspired by the death of Natividad Canda, an indigent Nicaraguan addict, who was killed by
two Rottweilers in Cartago Province,
Costa Rica, while being filmed by the news media in the presence of police, firefighters, and security guards.[10]
Upon conducting a probe, the Humane Society of the United
States was informed that the dog was in a state of starvation when it was
captured and escaped after one day of captivity; however, the organization also
categorically condemned "the use of live animals in exhibits such as this." [11] The World Society for the
Protection of Animals (WSPA) also investigated the exhibit.[8] WSPA found the
information regarding the issue to be "inconsistent" and met with sponsors of
the Honduras Bienal to ensure that
no animals would be abused at the 2008 exhibition in that country. [8]
world info page
