In today’s omen that the end is obviously nigh, an art professor at a venerated Christian liberal arts college has covered a life-size statue of Jesus with vacuum dust and is calling it art.
David Hooker, an associate professor at Wheaton College in the suburbs of Chicago, sifted the dust out of massive amounts of vacuumed debris the school’s custodial staff collected for him. He then meticulously smeared it onto a ceramic mannequin of Jesus suffering crucifixion.
The particular Jesus Christ that Hooker covered from head to toe in filth originally came from a Catholic church. He paid $4,000 for it.
Hooker, 44, claims his art represents death and resurrection. The dust represents “our sins or uncleanliness,” Hooker said, according to the Chicago Tribune.
As The College Fix notes, Hooker’s masterpiece is just in time for Easter.
“Literally, this dirt contains skin cells from the community. The idea is that our bodies are now connected to the body of Christ,” Hooker told the Tribune. “At first, some might find it disgusting, or even sacrilegious, but I hope people can get past that and see the meaning behind it.”
“I think it’s bold and creative and controversial to a certain extent,” added Jeffrey Greenman, Wheaton’s associate dean of biblical and theological studies. “If you want a picture of a very suburban, acceptable Jesus, this will not be it.”
The dust-covered Jesus, entitled “Corpus,” will debut as part of a larger collection at the Billy Graham Center on Wheaton’s campus in late April.