The 10 pieces that make up Cyrus Mejia’s “The 575 Project” fill half his studio space, so taking the exhibit on the road involves logistics that would make heads of state dizzy.
For some time, Cyrus, who is one of the founders of Best Friends, contemplated how he might best communicate the project’s message to a wider audience. Thus, his new book, “The 575 Project: Art for the Animals.”
The name of the project comes from a chilling statistic that he learned back in 2000 – that 575 animals are put to death every hour in shelters across the U.S.
The book lays out each of the pieces on a two-page spread with a photo and an accompanying description written by Cyrus. There’s an artist’s mission statement at the beginning, along with a brief interview in which he discusses his motivation and thought processes for the project.
Cyrus says the idea for “The 575 Project” came “flooding into my head all at once” as he was reading the statistics. “The first idea was to collect as many objects as I could to represent these 575 animals killed every hour, and then make art from each collection. I took out my sketchbook and started writing down ideas and making drawings. By the time I was done, I’d made a long list of items to collect, along with ideas for art works that could be made using these objects. This all happened during the first day of thinking about the project.”
It took two years for him to complete the work. Each piece in the installation is defined by the number 575. For instance, “Carry Me Home” is a doghouse covered with 575 dog collars, while “575 Candles Blown Out” consists of 575 cat food cans that were cleaned and filled with molten wax, and had a wick added to each.
One of the more provocative pieces is the “Screen of Self-Defense,” a pencil drawing of a dog and cat on rice paper. If you look closer, you’ll see that the composition of each animal is actually a string of sentences – 575 written excuses about why people relinquished their animal companions to shelters.
“By doing this drawing in pencil,” Cyrus says, “I’m saying these reasons are not permanent; they’re pretty flimsy. Of course, the reasons are real – grandma did move into the home and she is allergic to cats – but when weighed against the life of the cat, the reasons seem weak. I hope this work drives that point home.”
Cyrus says he hopes that the book will get people to start thinking about the facts and statistics of pet euthanasia in a different, more visceral way.
“It’s easy to gloss over the facts and not allow meaning to sink in,” he says. “It is my hope that the project will get people thinking about the problem and talking about the solutions. Imagine if even one family decides to adopt a pet from a shelter after viewing ‘The 575 Project.’ That’s a life saved. I don’t think I could hope for anything greater from a work of art.”
Written by Amy Abern
“The 575 Project: Art for the Animals” costs $17 and is available here. Profits from book sales will benefit Best Friends.
The work of Best Friends is possible only because of your generous support. Click here to help us reach our goal of No More Homeless Pets.
Check out more Best Friends news.
