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ArtStars*: Thorarinn Ingi Jonsson

By ArtStars*

ArtStars* is the TMZ of the Toronto art scene, in the good way, making easily digestible videos about the not-so-easily-digestible. Torontoist brings you one new ArtStars* episode (more or less) every week—with the warning that we don’t necessarily approve of their bad behaviour.

No heavy news here, honey—just sweet syrup and sugar.
We managed to arrange an interview with famed “ROM Bomb” artist Thorarinn Ingi Jonsson in Iceland on our way to Finland, even if only to gift him.
You might remember him from 2007, as the Ontario College of Art and Design student caught up in mischief charges for a fake bomb he planted in front of the Royal Ontario Museum during an AIDS fundraiser.
We wanted to give him a big kiss from Toronto to congratulate him for graduating from the Iceland Academy of the Arts this spring with a series of sculptures that have a whiff of how Toronto treated him. And for continuing his studies this fall in Prague—after all, he is an artist, not a criminal.
Adios, Toronto. It’s been a gas. But we’re off to uncover the Seven Unsolved Mysteries of the Art World, one country, one art scene at a time. This officially kicks off the ArtStars* Odyssey. And whenever we encounter a Toronto ex-pat, we promise to be the first to call home.

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Comments

  • rek

    Sculptures? I see meticulous reconstructions of torture devices that are hundreds of years old. Where is his creative input?

  • http://undefined heyba

    The Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research lost $100,000 in revenue because their fundraiser got cancelled due to the bomb scare. The only “art” I want to see from this guy is a giant signed cheque to CANFAR.

  • http://undefined EricSmith

    What does this article mean by, “Even if only to gift him”?

    Reading the excerpt from his artist’s statement, I see that he’s as incoherent as ever. Expiry of fifteen minutes, etc.

  • http://undefined rek

    Between this and the fake bomb* I seriously doubt he grasps the art part of being an artist.
    *On artistic merits alone. Building something that looks like a bomb, planting it in a location that very well could get a bomb threat, and then treating it as if it were a bomb, does not re-contextualize anything. Compare and contrast to this, which takes the landmine from dirty forgettable countries and puts them in a First World-equivalent location.

  • http://undefined spastic

    You people are so wrong. Not only is Thorarinn a kind-hearted, brilliant and sensual person but he is also our greatest living artist.

  • http://undefined Bias

    he seems like a nice enough guy, but his art is lazy and mediocre which makes the rom bomb incident unforgivable.