Monday, September 29, 2008

Fishing protest not for the squeamish

Here's a sharply-pointed protest against shark fishing.

Artist Alice Newstead had her back skin pierced with shark fishing hooks and suspended herself by the hooks from the ceiling of a cosmetics shop on London's trendy Regent Street.

Onlookers gasped to see the extreme piercing on display, complete with some blood trickling down Alice's back from the piercings.

"I am doing this because the demand for shark fin soup and other shark products is wiping out the shark population. I have had my torso, legs, arms, stomach and knees pierced before so that I could hang from them, so this is no big deal."
There is a small picture included here. Click the link in the first paragraph to see a closeup photo if you want a more graphic view.

What do you think? Will this raise awareness of a conservation problem? Or, will observers merely gawk at an example of extreme behavior? I think it may work in the context of Regent Street, but it won't translate well to a general audience...it's too severe for middle America.

17 comments:

Tashai said...

She's hard core. Whew, that's dedication for you!

Izzy said...

WOW ... just WOW ...

Unknown said...

Wow and ow!

Miriam Goldstein said...

Yawn. Suspension is a pretty common form of body modification and really not all that shocking. I can't imagine that this artist will get any more attention than the standard PETA-naked-people protest - not enough to do sharks any good.

Tocha-Humana said...

Its fantastic!

southwest spas said...

can anyone show me what to do one here?

Anonymous said...

I love fish, they taste good!

Ashley Shank said...

This is ridiculous. It makes me feel bad for her and her poor skin, not some sharks. It also reminds me of some horrifying version of The Little Mermaid. In my opinion, demonstrations like this only harm the message and cause the individual represents.

Miranda said...

I don't know what that Ashley lady is talking about, but this is a great idea. It really makes people aware of this. Great subject for the post!

Jessica said...

This post actually reminds me of a story I read about caviar and how there is a ban in some high producing countries of this delicacy because the fish population is deteriorating. However, fish are still being harvested and caviar is still being purchased.

platypuspower said...

that's a bit too extrreme, isn't it, hurting yourself to save other animals.

Samantha Dixon said...

Yes it's shocking but she's not in pain. People who do this do it for pleasure.

It's just like David Blaine's stunts giving him an ego boost only she's getting her kicks from mutilating her own body and dedicating it to sharks.

She's not demonstrating a commitment to the cause through self-sacrifice. She's just doing it to shock.

She should be commended for the effort to make a difference but she's no martyr.

Anonymous said...

Great!! Really Great!!
Just like her poise so much.

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www.innovativesouls.com

Fish Whisperer said...

It worked, didn't it. You posted about it I am posting about it and the news papers picked it up. I would call this a successful anti shark fishing campaign.
Cheers

Nelson Melle said...

I agree with some, it served a purpose, I'll talk about it with others and send them to this post. Severe, yeah, but it makes you stop and think. Great blog!

PIMENTA BY NIGHT EVENTOS said...

wow...
a matéria é bem legal!!!

i have blog too: pimentabynighteventos.blogspot.com

Eric Heupel said...

I say good on her. Semi-shocking protest for a shocking situation that still has little mainstream traction.