Inverted church sculpture moves from Vancouver to Calgary

A controversial sculpture rejected by Vancouver's parks committee is to be displayed by Calgary's Glenbow Museum.

Device to Root Out Evil, by American artist Dennis Oppenheim, looks like an upside-down church, with its steeple planted in the ground.

"A country church is seen balancing on its steeple, as if it had been lifted by a terrific force and brought to the site as a device or method of rooting out evil forces," Oppenheim says of the 1997 work on his website.

It came to Vancouver as part of the Sculpture Biennale,inwhich sculptures were displayed in public places throughout the city.

But Vancouver residents were divided on the work displayed near Coal Harbour. Some objected to its message, whichwas interpretedto be about the futility of religion's attemptsto root out evil. Some thought it blocked the view. Others loved it.

Vancouver's Public Parks Committee eventually voted to turf it out.

The work is owned by the Benefic Group, a company that seeks to expand opportunities for philanthropy in Canada.

The Glenbow Museum issued a statement Monday saying it was happy to welcome Oppenheim's work, describing him as a world-renowned sculptor.

"It's now time for Calgarians to be inspired and challenged by his sculpture," Jeff Spalding, Glenbow Museum president, said in the statement.

The sculpture of steel, aluminum and glass mounted on a concrete platform is to be dismantled and forwarded to Calgary next week. The Glenbow has not yet decided where it will be displayed, though it will likely be outdoors because of the size of the sculpture.

"What a contrast to the Vancouver public art process," said John Bromley, vice-president of the Benefic Group.

"There is no doubt this is a real loss that will hopefully stimulate reflection and review. But Vancouver's loss is a big win for Calgary, for Glenbow and for the artist to be recognized in another Canadian city."

Oppenheim was born in Electric City, Wash., trained in California and now works in New York.

His work has been shown at the Tate Gallery in London, the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York and Olympic Park in South Korea.