Artist Nathan Maynard, who lives in the Australian state of Tasmania, has created debate in the country with his new artist project. His idea: That someone in the white population voluntarily donates his dead body to honor the indigenous people, the Aborigines. Award-winning playwright Nathan Maynard has been advertising in newspapers around Australia to find what he needs for his new project: the body of a deceased Australian of British descent. Maynard has called the project the “Relics Act” and is intended as part of a festival in November which is organized by the Tasmanian Museum and the Art Gallery, among others. – I want people to ask themselves: What am I physically willing to do to honor the indigenous people, says Nathan Maynard. Has created debate But his art project has created debate in the country, where many think it is unethical to ask people to donate their bodies. Nathan Maynard says those who are outraged should ask themselves why they did not rule in the same way on the mass killings of Aboriginal people. – There are thousands of Aboriginal remains that were murdered and stolen and then sent overseas to museums and institutions, says Maynard. Donors must be checked The Tasmanian Museum agrees that Maynard’s idea may well be provocative, but that it can also be a way of telling the truth about Tasmania’s history. The museum also assures that the body in Maynard’s project would be handled in accordance with the law and that the ethical side of the project was also taken into account. – You must check that the person who donates his body is sane. The person making the donation should be able to say ‘yes, I’d love to do this, I can see the value,’ says Simon Longstaff at the Ethics Center of Australia. In the clip above, artist Nathan Maynard tells more about his idea
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