Trouble in Paradise

Two German artists have added civilization’s litter—old cars, broken signs, and bathroom sinks—to six otherwise idyllic animal enclosures at the Schönbrunn Zoo in Vienna.

Their “artistic intervention” is called “Trouble in Paradise.” The explanation of their work on their site suffers from being both written in artspeak and translated from German, but here’s the basic point:

“The viewer is forced to reconsider traditional modes of animal presentation and simultaneously to question the authenticity of concepts which are restaging ‘natural’ environments while they are increasingly endangered.”

It’s a funny and arresting idea, and well executed. There are a few more shots below. They’re all on the artists’ website here.

Via PSFK.