One man’s art is another man’s trash?
That was the case for a Netherlands museum, which says a maintenance worker mistook hyperrealistic art pieces for garbage. Last week, LAM museum detailed the now-viral chain of events involving an elevator technician and beer cans created by French artist Alexandre Lavet.
Lavet created the installation, titled “All the good times,” in 2016 as a way to commemorate the friends he made when he moved to Brussels, according to his website. Its pieces, including the beer cans, are made of acrylic paint on aluminum and varnish, and could be found in unexpected corners at LAM.
The museum, which focuses on food art, said on its website that Lavet’s work was showcased “inside the museum’s glass lift shaft, as if left behind by construction workers.” Museum director Sietske van Zanten said the unconventional display was meant to help “keep visitors on their toes.” However, it seems one person didn’t get that memo.
LAM explained that the elevator technician who unknowingly trashed Lavet’s work was filling in for the museum’s regular technician, “who is well acquainted with the building and its exhibits.” The Oct. 1 statement clarified that the museum holds “no ill will towards the lift technician.”
“He was just doing his job in good faith,” Van Zanten said. “In a way, it’s a testament to the effectiveness of Alexandre Lavet’s art.”
The museum says it began a “thorough” search for Lavet’s discarded pieces after its curator realized the cans were missing from their display. The curator found Lavet’s work “in a binbag, ready for disposal.”
The cans have since been recovered, cleaned and temporarily re-homed “in a place of honour” near the entrance of the museum. Instead of sitting atop a glass elevator, Lavet’s work is now on a traditional plinth. However, that won’t be the case for long, curator Elisah van den Bergh said.
“We enjoy surprising our visitors, so no space is off-limits,” she said.
A week after detailing the mishap, LAM and its employees have been basking in its virality. On social media, the museum shared a video compilation of coverage, pondering the question: “ART OR TRASH?”
A representative for Lavet did not immediately respond to The Times’ request for comment Wednesday, but a spokesperson for LAM said the international frenzy of attention has been “overwhelming.”
In an email to The Times on Wednesday, the spokesperson said the museum has become “considerably busier,” especially with visitors inquiring specifically about Lavet’s work.
“Visitors take their time and immerse themselves in the work to discover all the details. Great conversations arise about what art is,” the spokesperson said. “People often say that they are so surprised that something that looks so ordinary at first glance turns out to carry so much craftsmanship and stories that they recognize.”