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|year=2016
|year=2016
|region=North America
|region=North America
|artist=Aaron Bell / Artwork: Stand Tall, Stand Loud
|artist=Brian Wiggins,
|subject=Political/Economic/Social Opinion, Violence
|subject=Political/Economic/Social Opinion
|confronting_bodies=New York City Department of Parks & Recreation
|confronting_bodies=Allentown Art Museum
|medium=Sculpture, Public Art
|medium=Painting
|date_of_action=June 2016
|date_of_action=October 2016
|location=New York City
|location=Allentown, PA
|description_of_content=Aaron Bell's ''Stand Tall, Stand Loud'', is a sixteen-foot tall Cor-ten steel sculpture located in Riverside Park, New York City. The sculpture is composed of a stylized figure and a noose with a slash through it in place of a head. Bell's proposed design was selected by the Art Students League for Model to Monument (M2M), a public art program administered in partnership with the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. Bell, who is African American, conceived the sculpture as a statement against hate and bigotry. The sculpture's base is inscribed with a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr.: "Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about the things that matter."
|description_of_content="FUCK TRUMP" is an 11x14 inch gouache by artist Brian Wiggins. The abstract geometric work is made up of a grid of colored squares that spell the words FUCK TRUMP. It was included in the original Allentown Art Museum installation of 'Hues of Red and Blue: The 2016 Presidential Election,' which was a juried exhibition of works by more than twenty artists in a range of media. The show was intended to "present critiques, lampoons, and straight-on representations of the candidates, their supporters, and issues being discussed this hectic election season” (from the exhibition press release). It opened October 20 at the Allentown Art Museum with spill-over at RE:find, a local Allentown gallery.
|description_of_incident=A public art coordinator for city parks, Jennifer Lantzas, contacted Parks staff with concerns that "the image of the noose could be problematic for the borough" (Ginia Bellafante, NYTimes May 27, 2016). Parks spokesman Sam Biederman said that Bell's project was rejected because the site, near West 68th Street in Riverside Park, "is adjacent to an area regularly programmed with passive recreational activities such as yoga, Pilates and senior movement." Bell was told to remove the noose element or forfeit the opportunity to install the sculpture; the M2M committee did not honor his repeated requests to explain or defend his concept. The sculpture was initially installed on schedule but with an alternative head element.
|description_of_incident=After the show was installed and before the Museum's opening cocktail reception, the Museum was pressured by members of its board and the community to remove Wiggins' painting because it was too offensive. The Museum immediately removed the work in time for the opening party, placing it instead at the RE:find gallery location. Wiggins' name did not appear on any press materials, announcements, or on the Museum's exhibition webpage.
|description_of_result=The NYC Parks Department reversed its decision to censor the sculpture after protests by NCAC and the involvement of attorney Norman Siegel on behalf of the artist. The noose element was fabricated in Cor-ten steel. It was installed on July 20, 2016.
|description_of_result=Under pressure, the artist agreed to let the Museum move his work off site. His name remains missing from all exhibition documentation.
|image=Aaron Bell sculpture final2.jpg
|image=Brian Wiggins, Fuck Trump, 2016, 11x14, gouache on bristol.jpg
|source=http://untappedcities.com/2016/06/20/art-students-league-m2m-program-arrives-in-riverside-park-nyc/
}}
}}
[http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/29/nyregion/a-problematic-sculpture-is-silenced-by-new-york-parks-officials.html A ‘Problematic’ Sculpture Is Silenced by New York Parks Officials by Ginia Bellafante MAY 27 2016]
[http://www.allentownartmuseum.org/exhibition/hues-red-and-blue-2016-presidential-election Hues of Red and Blue: The 2016 Presidential Election, Thu, 10/20/2016 - Sun, 11/13/2016 - Payne Hurd Gallery & RE:find Gallery on the Walk]


[http://gothamist.com/2016/06/17/noose_sculpture_green_lit.php Artist Will Finish 'Problematic' Noose Sculpture In Riverside Park by Emma Whitford JUN 17 2016]
[http://www.allentownartmuseum.org/event/10-20-16/opening-hues-red-and-blue HUES OF RED AND BLUE, October 20 (Thursday) Opening reception of Hues of Red and Blue 6-8 p.m.]


[http://untappedcities.com/2016/06/20/art-students-league-m2m-program-arrives-in-riverside-park-nyc/ Art Students League M2M Program Arrives in Riverside Park NYC, 06/20/2016, by AFineLyne]
[http://whitehallcoplay.thelehighvalleypress.com/2016/11/18/allentown-artswalk-views-2016-presidential-election Allentown ArtsWalk views of 2016 Presidential Election], Friday, November 18, 2016 by ED COURRIER Special to The Press


[http://ncac.org/blog/stand-tall-stand-loud-censored-by-nyc-department-of-parks NCAC Letter to Mitchell J. Silver, FAICP, Commissioner, New York City Department of Parks & Recreation]
[http://www.mcall.com/entertainment/arts/mc-hues-red-blue-presidential-election-allentown-art-20161022-story.html Allentown Art Museum exhibit: The art of the presidential matter], by Tim Higgins Oct 22, 2016]
 
[http://www.onenewspage.com/video/20161021/5834035/Hues-of-Red-and-Blue-exhibition-opens-in.htm Video walk-thru: Hues of Red and Blue exhibition opens in Allentown]
 
[http://www.mcall.com/mc-pictures-ent-hues-of-red-and-blue-at-the-al-001-photo.html Hues of Red & Blue Images]


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Revision as of 17:53, 4 January 2017

Today's Featured Case


Brian Wiggins, Fuck Trump, 2016, 11x14, gouache on bristol.jpg

Artist: Brian Wiggins

Year: 2016

Date of Action: October 2016

Region: North America

Location: Allentown, PA

Subject: Political/Economic/Social Opinion

Medium: Painting

Confronting Bodies: Allentown Art Museum

Description of Artwork: "FUCK TRUMP" is an 11x14 inch gouache by artist Brian Wiggins. The abstract geometric work is made up of a grid of colored squares that spell the words FUCK TRUMP. It was included in the original Allentown Art Museum installation of 'Hues of Red and Blue: The 2016 Presidential Election,' which was a juried exhibition of works by more than twenty artists in a range of media. The show was intended to "present critiques, lampoons, and straight-on representations of the candidates, their supporters, and issues being discussed this hectic election season” (from the exhibition press release). It opened October 20 at the Allentown Art Museum with spill-over at RE:find, a local Allentown gallery.

The Incident: After the show was installed and before the Museum's opening cocktail reception, the Museum was pressured by members of its board and the community to remove Wiggins' painting because it was too offensive. The Museum immediately removed the work in time for the opening party, placing it instead at the RE:find gallery location. Wiggins' name did not appear on any press materials, announcements, or on the Museum's exhibition webpage.

Results of Incident: Under pressure, the artist agreed to let the Museum move his work off site. His name remains missing from all exhibition documentation.

Source:



Hues of Red and Blue: The 2016 Presidential Election, Thu, 10/20/2016 - Sun, 11/13/2016 - Payne Hurd Gallery & RE:find Gallery on the Walk

HUES OF RED AND BLUE, October 20 (Thursday) Opening reception of Hues of Red and Blue 6-8 p.m.

Allentown ArtsWalk views of 2016 Presidential Election, Friday, November 18, 2016 by ED COURRIER Special to The Press

Allentown Art Museum exhibit: The art of the presidential matter, by Tim Higgins Oct 22, 2016]

Video walk-thru: Hues of Red and Blue exhibition opens in Allentown

Hues of Red & Blue Images



What is Censorpedia?

Censorpedia is a crowdsourced online database of censorship cases within the arts and in culture. It is aimed at those researching censorship, at activists working for freedom of expression and at artists and other cultural producers whose expression has been subject to censorship or attempted censorship.

Censorpedia aids the fight for free expression by providing a repository of incidents involving information about what is vulnerable to censorship, and about the strategies and tactics that have defeated previous’ censorship attempts. Essentially, its articles document censorship outbreaks by providing the who, what, when, where and why.

Researchers can search for a specific case, year or keyword using the search box, as well as browse by medium, by grounds for censorship, or explore a random case.

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