Guerrilla artist trolls Detroit

True to his name, "Joe Vile" offers his solidarity with city residents in the most vulgar way imaginable

Published July 31, 2013 9:36PM (EDT)

This article originally appeared on Hyperallergic.

Hyperallergic An artist who asked to be identified as Joe Vile obviously has a sense of humor, so his guerrilla addition to Detroit’s “Monument to Joe Louis” (aka The Fist) is his tongue-in-cheek way of preparing the citizens of his beloved city to brace themselves for the … er … punch of bankruptcy.

The artists told Bill McGraw of Deadline Detroit (DD): ”Things are going to hurt … We’re just trying to grease the wheels of justice. Now, instead of selling something from the [Detroit Institute of Arts] DIA, this is being given to the city of Detroit. They can sell this.”

One DD commenter, replying to another commenter who called the work disgusting, explained: ”LOL. I’m sorry you’re insulted by this. The city of Detroit has been taking it up the ass by crooked politicians for years … this ONLY makes sense.

The work was removed today, though the city told DD that it was removed “as abandoned property” only “after consulting with Detroit Institute of Arts officials.”


By Hrag Vartanian

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Deadline Detroit Detroit Hyperallergic Joe Vile The Fist