No Mercy Art Exhibition:An Exploration of Farm Animal Cruelty (2014)

The No Mercy project is a mixed media art installation of multiple small scale sculptures created by Mara Lefebvre with additional sculptures crafted by members of the community. The exhibition, lectures and workshops explore how we treat the animals we eat and advocates for the welfare of factory farm animals.
Many people still think of farms as peaceful places where cows graze and chickens have the run of the barnyard. Unfortunately a majority of animals that are raised for food live miserable lives in intensive, dark and overcrowded facilities called ‘factory farms.” This system of mass production has resulted in pain and suffering of animals. Over 10 billion land animals are raised each year in cruel conditions. The food animal industry has been linked to environmental destruction, resource depletion and adverse health issues. The “No Mercy” exhibit educates viewers to the realities of modern agribusiness and encourages visitors to choose to act mindfully and compassionately toward animals. The completed installation will be composed of at least 365 sculptures to represent every day of the year that animals are mistreated.
The No Mercy sculptures by Mara Lefebvre are constructed from wires, motor parts, electrical plugs, stove parts and other recycled objects combined with plastic farm animals. The animals in the sculptures are confined, attached to wires and plugs and caught in unnatural positions. These postures represent the conditions at production facilities. On today’s factory farms, animals are denied even their most basic natural behaviors. They are crowded in cages, denied access to the outdoors and raised in misery. Some animals in the sculptures are painted gold, bronze and silver to represent the money making value of these animals used as profit units.
An audio loop of restaurant sounds will be playing in the background during the exhibition. The clanking of silverware on china, clinking glasses and the murmur of diner’s voices will be blende