The Smithsonian removed a video containing religious and gay imagery from the exhibition “Hide/Seek: Difference and Desire in American Portraiture” which explores how sexual orientation and gender identity have shaped American art.
The video, “A Fire in My Belly” by David Wojnarowicz is an edited version of a thirty minute video he created in 1987. It is described as “a compilation of footage largely shot in Mexico, weaving together numerous images of loss, pain, and death into a metaphor for the AIDS epidemic; it concludes in a picture of the world aflame.”
The artist, David Wojnarowicz died from AIDS-related illness in 1992.
Here’s the video edited in a different way on Youtube. This is not the exact same version that was in the Smithsonian exhibit.
VIDEO: Hide/Seek: Difference and Desire in American Portraiture Lecture
VIDEO: Congressman Jack Kingston Upset That Ellen DeGeneres Grabs Her Own Breasts
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5 Comments
Comments
They are morons. Censorship is stupid and reactionary. David Wojnarowicz is one of the greatest American artists of all times. Thanks for posting the video!
What is this, 1991? Don’t Republicans have something better to do, like to fix the economy they broke? If you break it, you gotta buy it.
This pissed me off soooo much. The thing is that public funding only goes towards maintenance of the museum itself – this exhibition was put together entirely by private money. Why do Christians always make themselves the victim? Not the guy dieing from AIDS? No irony in the fact the Church continues to preach against condom use?
Join the Facebook group and write to the directors of the Smithsonian Institution!
http://www.facebook.com/support.hide.seek
WRITE TO:
Martin Sullivan (NPG director), ***sullivanm@si.edu***
Richard Kurin (undersecretary for the arts and humanities), ***KurinR@si.edu***
Wayne Clough (secretary of the SI), ***Cloughw@si.edu***
CALL JOHN BOEHNER!
***(202) 225-4000, (202) 225-6205***
Thank you post posting this Larry.
Really? Can these conservatives get over themselves and their “white picket fence” lives? Sure the video is disturbing, as is the AIDS epidemic and the condition of the world in general. Art is meant to reflect our fears and challenge us….and whatever happened to free speech. Deal with it already!
what is this? it’s about AIDS?
Listen to this douchebag complain that Ellen DeGeneres is grabbing her own breasts- perhaps he wanted someone else to grab them?