Men/Women and Other Human Oddities
Date: 1995
Region: North America
Subject: Sexual/Gender Orientation
Medium: Mixed Media
Artists: Donna Hunter Westra, Tom Duimstra and Reb Roberts
Confronting Bodies: Betty Clark-Cannon Gallery benefactor and building manager
Date of Action: 1995
Location: Muskegon, Michigan, USA
Description of Artwork: The exhibit, Men/Women and Other Human Oddities shows males and female models, some nude, offset by text referring to broken marriages, physical abuse and other social ills.
The Incident: The Betty Clark-Cannon Gallery accepted the exhibit. After its opening, the gallery's owner, Betty Clark-Cannon, suggested that the pieces were "sick" and "degrading to women," and insisted that the nude works be removed. The gallery's curator, Ken Foster, asked to wait for the gallery board to make a decision. The buiding manager removed the entire exhibit and placed it in a storage closet.
Results of Incident: A week later the board met and agreed to replace the "less controversial" pieces. The artists removed some of their works voluntarily in protest.
Source: Artistic Freedom Under Attack, 1996