As a young artist living on the Lower East Side of new York City, Skaggs created a two hundred pound sculpture depicting a naked rotting skeletal corpse with a human skull, barbed wire crown of thorns, long human hair, and a metal penis dangling between the legs to protest the hypocrisy of the Church and man's inhumanity to man. He attached it to a ten foot tall cross made of telephone poles. Casts of Skaggs' own hands and sculpted feet were pierced by railroad spikes, attaching the body to the cross. Early Easter Sunday morning, Skaggs and an entourage of friends dragged the crucifix to the top of a barren knoll in Tompkins Square Park on the Lower East Side of New York City. The crucifix was eventually attacked by irate on-lookers and partially destroyed. Skaggs was confronted by police and City Parks officials and was summonsed. He had to appear in court to answer charges of violating City Park regulations where he was fined and released.
Crucifixion Performance Easter Sunday, 1967
Skaggs dragged the crucifix sculpture through the streets of New York after it had been exhibited at a New York University exhibition called Angry Artists: Artists Against the War in Vietnam. During the exhibition, the piece was taken down, broken, and placed into a 55 gallon trash can. Skaggs was told by NYU officials to go pick it up, that it had been removed. When he went to retrieve it, he was thrown down a flight of stairs by two NYU guards who were offended by the piece. Skaggs threatened a law suit. NYU had a hearing and apologized.
Crucifixion Performance
Easter Sunday, 1968
Skaggs dragged the Crucifix sculpture to Central Park and erected it during a "Be-in" held on Easter Sunday.
Crucifixion Performance
Easter Sunday, 1969
Skaggs dragged the Crucifix sculpture through the Easter Parade up Fifth Avenue to the doors of St. Patrick's Cathedral. As he turned towards the Cathedral, the doors slammed shut and the police converged around him. As the crowd shouted "Kill him, kill him," police officers kicked the cross into his back. They then made him drag it down the street to a paddy wagon, all the while threatening, cursing, and kicking him. As the Crucifix fell to the ground, the police stomped it to pieces. Skaggs seized the opportunity to bolt down the block where he jumped into a taxi on Madison Avenue and escaped. In anticipation of such a problem, Skaggs had built a replica Crucifix sculpture, keeping the original in tact for perhaps another day.
© 1997 Joey Skaggs