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Artist: Roberta Cohen Confronting Bodies: Baton Rouge Recreation and Park Commission, a local community member. Date of Action: 1994 Specific Location: Baton Rouge, Louisiana Description of Artwork: One drawing, called "Confronting your Fears," features a male figure with an erect penis strangling a woman. The other, "The Telephone Call," shows two birdlike figures, a male and female, lying in bed together while another male figure flies through the room. The drawing are meant to protest family violence and investigate gender roles and social identities.
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Artist: Jack Becker Confronting Bodies: University of Iowa School of Social Work Date of Action: 1994 Specific Location: Iowa City, Iowa Description of Artwork: The untitled piece consisted of three bronze and fiberglass figures depicting a nude man, woman and child raising their arms as doves flew above them. The school commissioned the piece in the 1970s to represent a family confronting the real world and the family oriented curriculum of the school.
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Artist: Karen Finley Confronting Bodies: City attorney's office Date of Action: 1994 Specific Location: Chicago, Illinios Description of Artwork: A performance piece called, "A Certain Level of Denial," that confronts the goverment's role in the AIDS epidemic and women's rights to control their own bodies. Finley begins on stage wearing only a hat and shoes, eventually dressing while offering a monologue and social commentary.
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Artist: Armistead Maupin Confronting Bodies: The Georgia Chapter of the American Family Association, and state legislature. Date of Action: 1994 Specific Location: Atlanta, Georgia Description of Artwork: A television series called, "Tales of the City," that features the lives of several characters and their changing relationships. The series contains no sexually explicit scenes but contains brief nudity and adult language.
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Artist: Evan Levy Confronting Bodies: Atlanta Chamber of Commerce Date of Action: 1994 Specific Location: Atlanta, Georgia Description of Artwork: The piece, "POWer Boxes" consisted of several mixed media sculptures using children's toys and other found objects installed within circuit breaker boxes. One box had letter blocks spelling the word "KING" and had a large muscular male doll wearing a Coca-Cola label aNd holding a syringe.
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Artist: National Broadcasting Company Confronting Bodies: WAFF-TV of Alabama Date of Action: 1995 Specific Location: Huntsville Alabama Description of Artwork: "Serving in Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story" is a television drama based on the true-life of Col. Cammermeyer's discharge from the army because of her lesbianism.
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Artist: Michael Meads Confronting Bodies: University faculty and Administrators at Auburn Date of Action: 1996 Specific Location: Auburn University Telfair Peet Theatre's Student Gallery Description of Artwork: Meads' aproximately 40 paintings, ink and oil-pastels use homosexuality thematically, while simultaneously addressing issues of death. Some typical works include portraits of Meads in his studion with male models. Five of the works contained nudity and none displayed sexual activity.
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Artist: Sonja van Kerkhoff Confronting Bodies: Oxford City Council, and artist collaborator. Date of Action: October 2002 Specific Location: Oxford, England at the Carfax intersection. Description of Artwork: The artwork was a series of performances and interactive pieces. An initial segment of the work engaged several artists to draw on the sidewalks of Oxford transposing cultural archetypes from their homelands on to the streets. Different sayings, monuments, and traditional activities were illustrated by artists, who hailed from all over Europe. One of the artists who helped Sonja organize the event became upset by the writings on the street. The irate artist then told Sonja to remove the work. Sonja, caring for the integrity of the simulation of colonization did not feel comfortable interceding in the messages delivered by her fellow colonizing artists. The disapproving member of the performance then acquired a mop and removed the work. The project continued on from there relatively smoothing. The remaining performances continued to focus on aspects of colonization, such as artists exchanging and trading objects to the native Oxfordians, which had no intrinsic value to them (e.g. a plastic coin), in an effort to have the population adopt Sonja, "the colonizer's," values. The final stage of the performance received much scrutiny from the local government. The last piece was to incorporate four different groups situated at the four corners of the Carfax intersection. One group of artists would sit and read silently, the second would stand and read aloud narrations from their own cultures works, the third group would read pieces of poetry that were culturally poignant, and the fourth group was designed to debate amongst themselves issues of language and colonization.
"Myself and Oxford's other Green Party Councilors were saddened to hear of your treatment during your recent visit to our city. We DID NOT agree with the Council's decision to ban your work. If you wish to return and perform again in Oxford we are happy to support you." Sonja will be taking them up on their offer sometime in 2003.
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Artist: Luis Valdez Confronting Bodies: Santana High School Date of Action: 1994 Specific Location: Santee, California Description of Artwork: Film "Zoot Suit," which depicts prejudice against Mexican Americans in Los Angeles during World War II. The film contains strong language and scenes of violence between U.S. servicemen and Mexican Americans.
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Artist: Michael Duffy Confronting Bodies: Santa Cruz Arts Commission Date of Action: 1994 Specific Location: Santa Cruz California Description of Artwork: One piece in question was a caricature of a local official surrounded by stuffed weasels called "A Bunch of Weasel." Another was a collage targeting White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta, and Duffy's disappointment with his treatment after leaving the United States Army called "Thanks, Leon."
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Artist: Various Women Artists formthe San Francisco Bay Area Confronting Bodies: San Leandro's Zoning Enforcement Commission and local businessperson. Date of Action: 1994 Specific Location: San Leandro, California Description of Artwork: A patchwork mural, divided into sections for each participating artist, wrapping around a warehouse.
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Artist: E.G. Crichton, Mary Tsiongas Confronting Bodies: Pavilion shopping center officials Date of Action: 1994 Specific Location: San Jose, California Description of Artwork: A mixed-media installation containing lights and mirrored reflections throughout the shopping center. The piece, entitled "Game Over," reflected the character of the mall after a number of stores had vacated.
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Artist: Charles Gatewood Confronting Bodies: San Diego Police Department, and local tour company Date of Action: 1994 Specific Location: San Diego, California Description of Artwork: Six large-scale photographic silkscreens of various subjects, including a nude woman in a reclining position.
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Artist: Noni Olabisi Confronting Bodies: Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Commission Date of Action: 1994 Specific Location: Los Angeles, California Description of Artwork: A 54-foot mural depicting the legacy of the Black Panther Party. Images contained party founder, Huey Newton, and others holding rifles as well as pictures of Panther community programs like the Sickle-cell Anemia drive and the establishment of food and clothing banks.
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Artist: Alv Wilenius Confronting Bodies: Guerneville, California police and local shopowner. Date of Action: 1994 Specific Location: Guerneville, California. Description of Artwork: Depiction of a male nude, water-dwelling, Scandinavian mythical spirit called Nackens reaching up from a pool seemingly pulling another nude male into the water. The spirit's hands and head were said to be in close proximity to the other man's penis.
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