Immersion – The Miss-Understood Photograph of Andres Serrano

 One of the pieces of art on my “Must See” list is officially titled “Immersion”, but is most known by its “popular” name, “Piss Christ”.  To say this photograph, by a Christian artist, is miss-understood would be an understatement.

I first learned of his work, like many, through church.  The pastor of the fundamental church I was then attending mentioned it in a sermon, and went on for a good 20 minutes about how “offensive” this “art” was.  You see, the artwork is a photographic image of a crucifix submerged in the artists urine.  It is easy to see why many of the religious community would take offense, if, like so many art viewers, they failed to look at the context of the piece, and the artists own reasons for creating it.

As an artist myself, as soon as I heard of this piece, and the controversy and offense surrounding it, I was intrigued.  I began researching the piece, and was surprised to find out the artist himself is Christian.

Immersion/Piss Christ by Andres Serrano -- Photo used in accordance with 'Fair Use' laws of the USA.

 

Everywhere that this art goes, since its debut in 1989, it is followed by controversy.  Andres Serrano was called “a jerk” by Senator Jesse Helms.  Senator Al D'Amato called the art itself “a piece of trash”.  Andres Serrano received death threats wherever the piece was displayed, and then the picture was damaged beyond repair in 2011 while in France by a group of protesters whose goal was to “re-Christianize” France.  

So why do I call this “offensive” piece of art “miss-understood”?  You have to look at the symbolism, and context the artist himself puts it in.  Serrano stated the piece “alludes to a perceived commercializing or cheapening of Christian icons in contemporary culture”, and as a Christian himself, wishes for Christian viewers of the piece to reflect on how they act out their faith. 

In an article with The Guardian, Serrano stated: "The thing about the crucifix itself is that we treat it almost like a fashion accessory. When you see it, you're not horrified by it at all, but what it represents is the crucifixion of a man, and for Christ to have been crucified and laid on the cross for three days where he not only bled to death, he shat himself and he peed himself to death. So if Piss Christ upsets you, maybe it's a good thing to think about what happened on the cross."

It has been a long time since I called myself a Christian, but the meaning behind Serrano’s words, and his art, still touches a deep part of my soul.  Too many Christians today do not live out their faith in the way Christ intended.  They do not have any reaction to their icon, the crucifix, and the horror it represents.  If you truly believe that Christ went through the crucifixion, as told by the bible, then every time you see the crucifix you should be moved.  To Serrano, everyone who only pays lip service to their faith, who sees the cross as a fashion accessory, and doesn’t delve deeper, are the ones who are “pissing on Christ”.  Their actions in contrast to their faith are what he sees as truly offensive, not a photograph on the wall. 

Serrano’s goal was to cause people to reflect on their own faith, and determine if they were living their faith, or “pissing on it”. As any true piece of art, “Immersion AKA Piss Christ” has been thoroughly miss-understood and caused immense controversy, rocketing it to my top 10 list of “must see” artwork of our time.