Early last week, a short video excerpt of “A Fire In My Belly” by David Wojnarowicz was pulled from the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery’s exhibit, Hide/Seek: Difference and Desire in American Portraiture.
The piece was only one of dozens of artworks in Hide/Seek, which is, via the exhibit’s page:
This is the first major museum exhibition to focus on sexual difference in the making of modern American portraiture. “Hide/Seek” considers such themes as the role of sexual difference in depicting modern America; how artists explored the fluidity of sexuality and gender; how major themes in modern art-especially abstraction-were influenced by social marginalization; and how art reflected society’s evolving and changing attitudes toward sexuality, desire, and romantic attachment.
FULL VIDEO BELOW
G. Wayne Clough, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institute, ultimately caved to pressure from Republican lawmakers John Boehner (incoming House Speaker, Ohio) and Eric Cantor (incoming Majority Leader, Va), as well as several conservative Catholic groups who deemed A Fire In My Belly to be anti-religious due to a 11 second scene of ants crawling on a crucifix (screen shot at top).
According to the Smithsonian’s museum director, Martin Sullivan, “In fact, the artist’s intention was to depict the suffering of an AIDS victim (specifically an homage to his boyfriend). It was not the museum’s intention to offend.”
Is a little controversy all it really takes for the Nation’s official art institution to censor a piece of art and assault the First Amendment? Not entirely. It takes the Republicans threatening to pull funding from the Smithsonian if the Smithsonian didn’t cancel THE ENTIRE exhibit. That’s what it takes.
Censorship in the 21st century is a frightening reaction to an exhibit that was created to show differences in sexual identity in modern America. Aren’t we beyond this by now?
In response to the Smithsonian’s decision to remove ”A Fire In My Belly” from the Hide/Seek exhibit and to protest against censorship in the arts, VandM.com is screening the original 13-minute silent version of David Wojnarowicz’s video, “A Fire In My Belly” below.
On Dec 1, 2010, a short video excerpt of “A Fire In My Belly” by David Wojnarowicz was pulled from the Hide/Seek exhibit at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery due to pressure from Republican lawmakers threatening the Smithsonian’s funding.
Censorship in the 21st century is a frightening reaction to an exhibit that was created to show differences in sexual identity in modern America. Aren’t we beyond this by now? When will this stop?
In response to the Smithsonian’s decision to remove “A Fire In My Belly” from the Hide/Seek exhibit and to protest against censorship in the arts, VandM.com is screening the original 13-minute silent version of David Wojnarowicz’s video online, courtesy of the Estate of David Wojnarowicz and P.P.O.W Gallery, New York.
Please be warned that the video may be considered graphic or offensive to some viewers.
Courtesy of the Estate of David Wojnarowicz and P.P.O.W Gallery, New York.
For more background on David Wojnarowicz, who died of AIDS related complications in 1992, and why his art is important, here’s a good article from Dan Cameron in Art & Auction: “Why David Wojnarowicz Matters“
