Gatewood Photographs at the Rita Dean Gallery
Date: 1994
Region: North America
Subject: Explicit Sexuality , Nudity
Medium: Photography
Artist: Charles Gatewood
Confronting Bodies: San Diego Police Department, and local tour company
Dates of Action: 1994
Location: San Diego, California
Description of Artwork: Six large-scale photographic silkscreens of various subjects, including a nude woman in a reclining position.
The Incident: Responding to a complaint from a local tour company, San Diego police asked the Rita Dean Gallery owners, Cathee Schultz and J.D. Higgins, to remove Gatewood's pieces from their front window, allegedly threatening the two with arrest. Schultz and Higgins placed pieces of cardboard reading "Censored" over the subject's nipples and groin areas.
Results of Incident: Artist Charles Gatewood responded by contacting the ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties, who informed the San Diego police of their violation of the First Amendment. When the gallery removed the cardboard pieces, there was no response from the San Diego police.
Source: Artistic Freedom Under Attack
