Crack in floor could divide London art lovers

0 Comments | AFP, October, 2007

LONDON (AFP) — A massive crack in a concrete floor -- said to symbolise racism and the gulf between white Europeans and the rest of humanity -- was unveiled Monday as the central exhibit at London's Tate Modern gallery.

"Shibboleth," by Colombian sculptor Doris Salcedo, runs the full 167-metre (548-feet) length of the massive Turbine Hall at the famous gallery on the south bank of the River Thames.

It starts as a hairline crack then widens and deepens as it zigzags across the room. Salcedo told reporters it took more than one year to make and she spent the last five weeks installing it.

"What is important is the meaning of the piece. The making of it is not important," she added.

Asked how deep the fissure goes, she replied: "It's bottomless. It's as...