Artist: Fuji Minx
Confronting Bodies: YouTube
Date of Action: June 25, 2010
Specific Location: The Internet
Description of Artwork: It is a music video depicting the female lead singer as a topless devil and exposes her breasts numerous times in the video. A photo of Pope Benedict XVI is also shot by a Nerf gun while a photo of Sinead O'Connor is placed prominently.
Description of Incident: YouTube removed the video from their website but did not give the reasons for doing so.
Results of Incident: The video remains banned.
Source: http://friendlyatheist.com/2010/06/25/fuji-minx-video-gets-banned-from-youtube/
Date Input: Monday, June 28, 2010
Date Edited:
Name: Political Painting in Australia Denied To Be Hung Up Without Any Explanation Given.
[ Edit ]
Date: 2006-present
Location: Australia
Subject: Political/Economic/Social Opinion
Medium: Painting
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Artist: Chris Degenhardt
Confronting Bodies: Tweed Shire Council
Date of Action: June 2010
Specific Location: Murwillumbah, Australia
Description of Artwork: "The Invasion" is an amalgamation of history, art, and jarring images, ranging from Munch's The Scream to Nazis, to a dead koala bear.
Description of Incident: The painting expresses outrage which stems from the state government's "Special Legislation" that overrode a number of entrenched environmental and social laws, just so that Repco Rally Australia, a national racing organization, could run its car race in national parks. The organization was not required to file a development application, so the residents of the affected areas had no say over the project. The painting was meant to help empower local councils and their constituencies so that they would have a voice when it comes to development projects exceeding $10 million. It was to be displayed in the Murwillumbah Library, but the Tweed Shire Council banned it from being hung up. No explanation was given.
Results of Incident: Unfortunately, the painting remains unhung in the Murwillumbah Library.
Source: Chris Degenhardt
Submitted By: Paul Rozenberg
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Date Input: Monday, June 14, 2010
Date Edited:
Name: Controversy over painting of Adolf Hitler
[ Edit ]
Date: 2006-present
Location: North America
Subject: Political/Economic/Social Opinion
Medium: Painting
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Artist: Gage Delprete
Confronting Bodies: Marblehead Arts Association
Date of Action: June 2010
Specific Location: Marblehead, Massachusetts
Description of Artwork: A painting of Adolf Hitler
Description of Incident: The painting was hung up at the Marblehead Arts Association along with other paintings by Delprete. A family who had ties with relatives who were murdered in the Holocaust saw the painting and demanded that the artwork be taken down. The Association obliged the family and took it down.
Results of Incident: After three days, the Association decided to re-hang the portrait of Hitler.
Source: http://www.dailynewstranscript.com/arts/x157354553/Hung-up-on-Hitler
Submitted By: Paul Rozenberg
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Date Input: Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Date Edited:
Name: City of San Marcos tries to remove car-turned-visual art from public view.
[ Edit ]
Date: 2006-present
Location: North America
Subject: Other
Medium: Sculpture
,Public art
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Artist: Michael Kleinman, Scott Wade, John Furly Travis
Confronting Bodies: City of San Marcos
Date of Action: 2008
Specific Location: San Marcos, Texas
Description of Artwork: A smashed '88 Oldmobile that has been painted over and cacti put in top of it.
Description of Incident: Kleinman had this car put in front of his new Planet K store. It was visible from a highway. However, San Marcos has a law that states that junked cars (which this Oldsmobile was) are banned from public places or from places that can be viewed from public spaces. The City gave Planet K multiple tickets for it and then ordered the car to be removed.
Results of Incident: Kleinman and the artists brought the matter into court, claiming that the city was in violation of the First Amendment and the Visual Artists Rights Act (VARA). The court determined that, under intermediate scrutiny, the city had an interest in banning junked cars from sight. Also, it was determined that VARA did not apply to this case because the car was used as advertisement for the store. The District Court ruled for the city and ordered the car to be removed. The 5th Circuit Court affirmed the decision on its merits but vacated the order due to a technicality.
Source: Kleinman v. City of San Marcos
Date Input: Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Date Edited:
Name: The Last Temptation of Christ
[ Edit ]
Date: 1985 - 1995
,2006-present
Location: North America
,South America
,Asia
Subject: Religious
Medium: Film Video
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Artist: Martin Scorsese
Confronting Bodies: Various Christian groups
Date of Action: 1988
Specific Location: No specific location
Description of Artwork: The Last Temptation of Christ is an adaption of the novel by Nikos Kazantzakis. It is a portrayal of a Jesus who was plagued by doubts and fears about being the son of God. The portion of the film that proved to be the most controversial was during the eponymous last temptation while Christ was on the cross. The viewer would watch him come off the cross, marry Mary Magdalene, start a family with Mary and Martha (Lazarus's sisters), and die an old man. However, that sequence was just a temptation, and Jesus ends dying on the cross.
Description of Incident: The film was met with a wave of displeasure from many groups. A French Christian fundamentalist group through Molotov cocktails at a theater in Paris to protest the film. It was banned in several countries, such as Turkey, Chile, Argentina, and Mexico.
Results of Incident: The film has become more accepted as people started to realize the real message of the movie. Many countries that banned it lifted the ban. Also, many Chirstian groups have accepted the film and even agreed with its portrayal. However, the film remains banned in Singapore and the Philippines.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Last_Temptation_of_Christ_(film); http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095497/
Date Input: Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Date Edited:
Name: Monty Python's Life of Brian
[ Edit ]
Date: 1976 - 1984
,1985 - 1995
,1995 - 2005
Location: Europe
Subject: Religious
Medium: Film Video
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Artist: Monty Python
Confronting Bodies: Norway, Ireland, Devon, Aberystwyth
Date of Action: 1979
Specific Location: Norway, Ireland, Devon, Aberystwyth
Description of Artwork: The film is a satire on politics and organized religion. It follows the adventures of Brian, a contemporary of Jesus Christ, who joins a political movement to rid Judea of the Romans and, in the process, becomes a messiah to a group of people.
Description of Incident: There was a great deal of controversy surrounding the film because some groups viewed it as blasphemous and making fun of the story of Christ. It was banned in Norway and Ireland and in municipalities in England.
Results of Incident: Norway lifted their ban on the film a year after the release. Ireland did not allow the film to be shown until 1987. The town of Devon revoked their ban in September 2008, and Aberystwyth in Wales lifted their ban in 2009.
Source: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079470/trivia
Date Input: Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Date Edited:
Name: Painting of Breastfeeding Removed from Facebook
[ Edit ]
Date: 2006-present
Location: North America
Subject: Explicit Sexuality
Medium: Painting
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Artist: Kate Hansen
Confronting Bodies: Facebook
Date of Action: March 27-29 2010, April 5, 2010, and April 7, 2010
Specific Location: Facebook
Description of Artwork: The paintings in question are called Madonna and Child, showing women breastfeeding babies while having a sort of halo above them.
Description of Incident: Hansen posted one of her Madonna and Child paintings on a Facebook group page called Portrait and Figure Artists. It was removed on March 27. Thinking it was a mistake, she re-posted the painting along with some other Madonnas. They were all taken off the site, and she received an email from Facebook, saying that she violated their Terms of Use by posting something hateful, threatening, or obscene.
Results of Incident: Hansen responded to Facebook by sending an email questioning their policy. Full nude paintings were allowed to remain on the site while hers, which were less explicit and just showed breastfeeding, were taken down.
She started a group on Facebook protesting this policy.
Source: http://www.katehansenart.com/; http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=105484426150424&ref=mf; http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=109151119105733&ref=mf
Date Input: Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Date Edited:
Name: South Park Episode 201
[ Edit ]
Date: 2006-present
Location: North America
Subject: Religious
Medium: Television
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Artist: Trey Parker and Matt Stone
Confronting Bodies: Revolution Muslim and Comedy Central
Date of Action: April 21, 2010
Specific Location: New York City
Description of Artwork: "201" was the second part of a two part episode of South Park. While subplots ran rampant throughout the episode, one particular story involved the Super Best Friends, a group comprised of religious figures with superpowers. Muhammad was to be depicted within the group.
Description of Incident: In the first part, Muhammad was dressed up in a bear suit. In response, an Islamic religious group called Revolution Islam issued a statement online saying that the creators of the show should tread carefully about showing the prophet onscreen because the murder of Theo Van Gogh in 2004 could happen to them as well. Because of the posting, Comedy Central decided to censor "201." When the final cut was streamed to Comedy Central from the show's production facility, the network put a large black rectangle in front of any depiction of Muhammad that said "Censored." They also beeped out any audio reference made, ultimately resulting in beeping out a 2 minute speech that outlined the story's moral conclusion.
Results of Incident: The episode aired censored. There were numerous responses to the episode. Jon Stewart launched a tirade on air against Comedy Central, saying that it is the network's right to take precautions to safeguard their employees but then showed numerous religious jokes made on The Daily Show. A Facebook group was created to establish Everybody Draw Muhammad Day on May 20.
It is unknown what will happen to the episode when it goes into reruns and online streaming, but for now, it remains censored and is not allowed to be posted online at South Park Studios.com.
Source: www.southparkstudios.com; http://voices.washingtonpost.com/comic-riffs/2010/04/post_2.html#comments, http://voices.washingtonpost.com/comic-riffs/2010/04/everybody_draw_mohammed_day_ga.html; http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/2010/apr/22/south-park-ce
Date Input: Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Date Edited:
Name: MTV bans female rapper's "suicidal" video
[ Edit ]
Date: 1995 - 2005
Location: North America
Subject: Political/Economic/Social Opinion
Medium: Television
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Artist: Invincible
Confronting Bodies: MTV
Date of Action: May 4, 2010
Specific Location: New York City
Description of Artwork: Ropes is a song by Invincible. The music video for it had undertones of suicide and a very haunted look about it.
Description of Incident: Invincible submitted a music video for her song to mtvU, the MTV channel that targets college students. Shewas told that her video had a high likelihood of being accepted and was asked to send a reformatted version. She did, but just a couple weeks later, Invincible received an email back. MTV's content department officially approved the video for airing, but the standards department rejected it. She was advised that "Ropes" was "too problematic" with its "suicidal undertones."
Results of Incident: The video remains banned from MTV's airwaves.
Source: Salon.com: http://www.salon.com/life/broadsheet/2010/05/04/dj_invincible
Date Input: Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Date Edited: Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Name: Photograph of nude 10-year-old Brooke Shields removed from the Tate Modern a day before the exhibit was to open.
[ Edit ]
Date: 2006-present
Location: Europe
Subject: Nudity
Medium: Photography
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Artist: Richard Prince
Confronting Bodies: Tate Modern, Scotland Yard
Date of Action: September 30, 2009
Specific Location: Tate Modern, London, UK
Description of Artwork: "Spiritual America" is a photograph of a nude 10-year-old Brooke Shields. It was originally taken by Gary Gross. Richard Prince then took the photograph, put it in a gilded frame, and displayed it without any commentary on it.
Description of Incident: The Tate was supposed to display "Spiritual America" as part of their Pop Life exhibition. Police officers saw coverage of the exhibit in newspapers. They consulted with the Crown Prosecution Service and decided to preempt any breach of obscenity law by forcing the Tate to take down the work.
Results of Incident: "Spiritual America" was not shown at the Tate as part of their Pop Life exhibit.
Source: The Guardian: http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2009/sep/30/brooke-shields-naked-tate-modern
Date Input: Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Date Edited: Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Name: Shepard Fairey murals painted over in KY.
[ Edit ]
Date: 2006-present
Location: North America
Subject: Political/Economic/Social Opinion
,Other
Medium: Public art
,Painting
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Artist: Shepard Fairey
Confronting Bodies: Michael Claypool; Covington Independent Public Schools; Madisonville, KY
Date of Action: May 20, 2010; May 25, 2010
Specific Location: Covington, KY and Madisonville, KY
Description of Artwork: The first mural to be painted over was "Duality of Humanity 4 Pike Street." The images was of an Asian child soldier holding an automatic rifle. The second mural was of a large eye and said "Obey. Never trust your own eyes. Believe what you are told."
Description of Incident: The Contemporary Arts Center in Minnesota is hosting an exhibition of Shepard Fairey's work on murals he created throughout lower Minnesota and Western Kentucky. "Duality of Humanity" was painted on a building owned by Michael Claypool, which was in the line of sight for an elementary school. The mural recieved complaints from parents, and Claypool did not approve of the final product, so he ordered the wall to be whitewashed. The second mural, which was on the wall of a former nightclub, was discovered to have been painted over. No reason has been given for the coverup.
Results of Incident: The murals remain painted over.
Source: news.cincinnati.com
Date Input: Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Date Edited: Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Name: Kaucyila Brooke's photo collage "Tit for Twat" censored from Bucharest Biennale.
[ Edit ]
Date: 2006-present
Location: Europe
Subject: Other
Medium: Photography
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Artist: Kaucyila Brooke
Confronting Bodies: National Geological Museum of Romania, Bucharest Biennale officials
Date of Action: May 19, 2010
Specific Location: National Geological Museum in Bucharest, Romania
Description of Artwork: Tit for Twat is a three part photo montage, photo novella, gender art narrative. It address the biblical presumption of heterosexuality and its relationship to other theories of origin, notions of innovation and origin in history, creationism, science and material culture.
Description of Incident: Brooke was to present her work at the Bucharest Biennale in the National Geological Museum. However, when the director of the museum viewed the exhibit, which was just partially finished, he demanded that the exhibit be removed. Officials at the Biennale obliged him and removed the work. There is no room or other resources for Tit for Twat to be shown on. It is unknown as to the reason for the de-installation.
Results of Incident: For now, Tit for Twat remains censored, but the Biennale has just started and will go on until July 25. The officials there still expect Brooke to speak there.
Source: prweb.com: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2010/05/prweb4022544.htm, Bucharest Biennale 2010: http://www.bucharestbiennale.org/venues.html
Submitted By: NCAC
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Date Input: Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Date Edited: Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Name: Censor of a high school art's project
[ Edit ]
Date: 2006-present
Location: Europe
Subject: Political/Economic/Social Opinion
Medium: Painting
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Artist: Mathilde (myself)
Confronting Bodies: Me, and my head master!
Date of Action: 3/03/2010
Specific Location: In Lille, in a high school
Description of Artwork: A woman with the burqa and a false testimony for a project on the private in a public place
Description of Incident: My head master was not ashamed ofextracting the work of the wall where I had fixed the painting and accused me of not respecting the secularism
Results of Incident: My head master summoned me without informing my art professor and wanted to intimidate me!
Source: Myself
Submitted By: Mathilde
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Date Input: Friday, March 5, 2010
Date Edited:
Name: Fenomenale feminatheek
[ Edit ]
Date: 2006-present
,2006-present
,2006-present
Location: Europe
Subject: Nudity
Medium: Photography
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Artist: Louis Paul Boon
Confronting Bodies: Provincie Antwerpen
Date of Action: around 2008 (to check)
Specific Location: Fotomuseum Antwerpen
Description of Artwork: collection of photographs of female pin-ups
Description of Incident: Exhibit prohibited by local government
Results of Incident: Exhibit cancelled and a lot of media attention
Source: national media: Newspapers, television, radio,...
Submitted By: S. Vandervelden
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Date Input: Sunday, February 14, 2010
Date Edited:
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