Pig Escapes Slaughterhouse

Sue Coe, English

Pig Escapes Slaughterhouse, early 21st century

This painting is a representation of a memory from the artist’s childhood, as the caption at the top explains. Sue Coe lived in a neighborhood with a slaughterhouse, and used to watch helplessly as pigs escaped and eventually were recaptured. The distraught and twisted faces of the animals and cramped conditions portray Coe’s firsthand perception of the cruelty carried out through the meat industry. The stillness of the mother and daughter contrasted with the fleeing pig at their feet can represent the helplessness she and many others feel when confronted with this cruelty. She has since created a series of works titled "Graphic Witness” exploring the grief she felt as a child, spreading awareness, and working to incite a change in conditions in the meat industry. Label by Jackson Schiminger

Coronado Feeders, Dalhart, Texas

Mishka Henner, Belgian

Coronado Feeders, Dalhart, Texas, 2012 (Feedlots series, detail)

This is an aerial photograph of a cattle farm feedlot in Texas. The photo looks post-apocalyptic. The colors and shapes created by the feedlot look more like the outcome of an oil spill or natural disaster than a farm. This image shows how factory farming can impact the land it is done on. It also shows the differences between the realities of factory farming and the ideas of farming that many Americans have. Label by Becca Gurysh

For more information on Mishka Henner’s Feedlots series, see the artist’s website: https://mishkahenner.com/Feedlots

Happy Meat

Roger Olmos, Spanish

Happy Meat, 2020

This piece was created by Roger Olmos for the book Happy Meat. It depicts a satirical view of factory farming in the world and the vast scale of the operations. The artist is a big advocate for animal rights and ethical farming. His style is reminiscent of children’s books with a dark twist. The warehouses reach to the horizon and the truck looks tiny compared to the towering chicken “coops.” The eerie red light stands as a juxtaposition to happy and colorful exterior, alluding to the terrible living conditions inside of the building. This piece spoke to me because of the unique art style and the surreal and barren landscape akin to something out of a dystopian film. Label by Sam Dutilly

End of the Road

Raj Singh Tattal, English

End of the Road, 2017

The main reason the meat industry is able to stay in business is people turning a blind eye to what is actually happening. People ignore the fact that what they are eating is animals that were once alive. Artists like Raj Singh try to expose this industry through art. This work shows a human in the position of the cows that are about to be slaughtered. The bar covers his mouth, as though silencing him. Fear can be seen in the eyes of not only the human, but the cows as well. If we as a society were able to recognize and respect animals as living beings, there is a good chance that the consumption of meat would go down drastically. Label by Riley Kelley