Arrested SA artist will face French court

15 September 2013 - 15:22 By Sapa
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Steven Cohen momentarily stole attention away from the Eiffel Tower when he appeared with a cockerel tied to his genitals
Steven Cohen momentarily stole attention away from the Eiffel Tower when he appeared with a cockerel tied to his genitals
Image: QUENTIN EVRARD

South African performance artist Steven Cohen is due in court in Paris on December 16 on charges of sexual exhibitionism.

"It's the Day of Reconciliation in South Africa, but the day of judgment for me," he reportedly told the Sunday Times.

This week, Cohen was arrested after dancing in front of the Eiffel Tower with a live rooster attached to his penis.

He told the Sunday Times he was jailed for 10 hours, was interrogated and had to give DNA and undergo psychiatric evaluation.

Cohen said he would rather go to jail than pay a fine for the work for which he was arrested.

He reportedly said the message of his work was "about being pulled in many directions simultaneously.

"Frank's [Cohen's name for the rooster] a feisty cock and wonderfully capable of deciding the choreography," he was quoted as saying.

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