Hornsleth Village Project

The Hornsleth Village Project was a controversial conceptual art project by Danish artist Kristian von Hornsleth in which he went to the Ugandan village of Buteyongera and paid impoverished villagers to legally change their names to "Hornsleth". In exchange for consenting to have "Hornsleth" added to their identity documents, the villagers were given livestock. The project began in June 2006; in October 2006, Kampala officials put a stop to the project, citing ethical reasons.[1]

By that time, 270 newly renamed Hornsleths had each received a pig, and another 70 had each received a goat.

Hornsleth, who said that he would like it if the village's name were eventually changed as well,[2] described it as a straightforward business transaction, wherein he paid the villagers to participate in his project and pose for photographs.

The Ugandan Minister of Ethics, James Nsaba Buturo, criticized Hornsleth as being a cult leader,[3] obscene, mentally deranged, evil,[4] racist, and a homosexual,[3] and the project as demeaning, and stated that official diplomatic measures would be taken.[5] Nsaba Buturo also protested against Hornsleth's use of the Ugandan national flag and the crested crane (Uganda's national bird) on the invitation cards to Hornsleth's photo exhibition in Copenhagen, entitled "We Can Help You, But We Want To Own You".

By June 2008, "most" of the residents of Buteyongera had gone back to their original names,[6] and by 2012, Hornsleth was cited by Ugandan law enforcement as an example of "foreign nationals" who have "ulterior, selfish motives".[7]

References
  1. Govt Blocks Mukono Pig Project from The Monitor, November 27, 2006; by Jude Luggya & Agness Nandutu; archived at AllAfrica.com
  2. Storm over 'pig-for-name' artist, BBC, 17 November 2006
  3. The Hornsleths of Uganda, by Lars Eriksen, at the Guardian; published November 17, 2006; retrieved October 12, 2014
  4. Hornsleth Satanic, Says Minister Buturo., by Steven Candia, from AllAfrica.com (archived at HighBeam Research); published October 26, 2006; retrieved October 12, 2014
  5. Hornsleth show angers govt Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine at New Vision, November 15, 2006
  6. Memories of Hornsleth Still Abound in Buteyongera Village, by Hellen Ntegyereize, at Uganda Radio Network; published June 26, 2008; retrieved November 16, 2017
  7. Suspicious alien arrested in Nakasongola Barracks, by Benon Tugumisirize, at The Observer; published August 19, 2012; retrieved November 16, 2017
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