The Art Institute of Chicago Has Been Accused of Erasing Felix Gonzalez-Torres’s Queer Identity—a Growing Problem, Critics Say | Artnet News

The Art Institute of Chicago has been accused of erasing Felix Gonzalez-Torres’s gay identity and AIDS diagnosis after changing the wall label for a beloved work by the artist in its collection., leaving out a previous reference to the artist’s late partner, Ross Laycock, who died from an AIDS-related illness the same year the piece was created.

“The erasure of Ross’s memory and Gonzalez-Torres’s intent in the new description is an unconsciable [sic] and banal evil,” the post read. It has since been retweeted nearly 4,000 times.comprises 175 pounds worth of shiny, wrapped candy—a figure that represents Laycock’s ideal body weight. Gallery goers are encouraged to take a piece as they contemplate the resultant loss to the artwork’s form—and, metaphorically, Laycock’s body, as it battled illness.

The new label explained that the artwork’s 175 pounds “corresponds to the average weight of an adult male,” not specifically Laycock’s, and that, “as visitors choose to take candy from the work, the volume and weight of the work decrease.”

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Twitter called a change to an AIDS-era artwork at the Art Institute a ‘desecration.’ The reality is more complex.Following social media outcry, the Art Institute of Chicago amended the descriptive label to one of the most eye-catching works in its modern and contemporary collection last week.
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