A caretaker at Ryerson University discovered a heart on campus on Nov. 18. The heart was found outside the Raymond Chang School of Continuing Education building on Victoria Street.
Ryerson’s Twitter account informed students on Wed around 10 a.m.: “Object found near campus believed to be a cow heart. Toronto Police investigating. We’ll update the community when we know more.”
Sgt. Eduardo Wulff from the police department told reporters he didn’t suspect it was a human heart because it was unusually large. Photos of the heart were sent to the coroner.
The heart was suspected to be a cow’s heart but the police department followed the same procedures as if it were human, contacting the homicide squad and the coroner’s office.
Police reported a Ryerson arts student has claimed responsibility for the heart. The student was taking pictures of it for school, and no criminality is involved.
Const. Victor Kwong informed the press police have yet to confirm the student’s account and so the coroner is still examining the heart.
According to Sophie Trecroce, a third-year photography student at Ryerson, the news of an arts student being responsible for the heart on campus wasn’t surprising.
“I wasn’t in shock. A lot of photo students create obscure work. I think I would have been shocked if a photo student wasn’t responsible,” Trecroce said.
Trecroce said she believes Ryerson promotes eccentricity within their arts programs and the student’s choice to photograph a heart was not crossing the line.
“To be an arts student you have to be able to learn the rules and then be able cross the line to make thought-provoking work,” Trecroce said. “I think the student should have at least asked someone in the Image Arts building how to dispose of the organ properly instead of carelessly dumping it into a garbage can.”
