You Can Buy "Piss Christ" Tomorrow

If your taste in art falls somewhere on the scandalous side, then you'll want to set your alarm for 9:30 a.m. EDT tomorrow, when Sotheby's is set to auction off Andres Serrano's notorious photo "Piss Christ", which depicts a small crucifix submerged in the artist's urine and stirred up a whole hell of a national controversy in the late eighties.

Estimated to go for somewhere between $100,000 and $150,000, the 45 by 32-inch piece received quite a bit of press in 1989 when it was revealed that Serrano received some funding for it from the National Endowment for the Arts — outraging many, who found it to be an act of blasphemy. And while it was critically well-received and has since been exhibited all around the world, it still riles people up, causing museum and gallery employees to receive death threats wherever it's on display. Fair warning.


Joe McGauley is a senior editor at Supercompressor and thinks artistic freedom is the coolest.