this post was submitted on 09 Sep 2023

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Artists want complete control over their public exhibitions. Governments say it’s not that simple (apnews.com)

submitted 1 year ago by girlfreddy@lemmy.ca to c/news@lemmy.world

15 comments fedilink hide all child comments

If things had gone as originally planned, Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum would be launching its fall exhibition Friday. But officials postponed the show six weeks before the opening over concern that a painting by activist-artist Shepard Fairey could be seen as “disparaging toward some City of Mesa employees.”

Now, the Phoenix suburb is ready to move forward and debut the show in October, albeit with a prominent disclaimer that the artwork represents only the artist’s views. All the original artists have been invited to remain in the exhibition.

Thomas “Breeze” Marcus will not be one of them. And he says he won’t be displaying any of his work, which focuses on Native American life, in Mesa in the future.

The whole ordeal, in his view, is rooted in censorship.

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[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 28 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

His painting that led to the suspension of the Mesa art exhibit, titled “My Florist is a Dick,” is seen by some as anti-police. It depicts a police officer in riot gear holding a baton with a flower growing out of it. The phrase ‘when his day starts your days end’ appears at the top right of the painting.

Sounds pretty fucking awesome to me, and I don't even like Shepard Fairey's work much.

Fuck the police.

EDIT: I looked it up. One of Fairey's better works, for sure, but I'm still not a fan. Fuck the exhibitors though.

[–] cristo@lemmy.world 9 points 1 year ago

Its a cool piece of art. Kind of derivative of Banksy. Idk why people are being so pissy about it.

[–] FuglyDuck@lemmy.world 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Well. It’s evocative. That’s for sure.

I like the style, I don’t think I like the way it makes me feel- and don’t think I’m really supposed to.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world -1 points 1 year ago (2 children)

See, I don't like his style. Apart from (including this, I bet) appropriating other artists' work- many of them black artists, not a good look for a white man- I just think the idea could be executed better. The cop doesn't look menacing enough even though he's dressed that way because the baton is at rest. The flower just looks bad. The idea itself is, shall we say, remarkably similar to a scene in the film Yellow Submarine, where the Blue Meanies try to fire their guns, but flowers grow out of them instead.

Regarding his work overall, the Andre the Giant Has a Posse thing was interesting as a meme, but I've just never thought of him much as an artist. Even the Obama portrait- which he also appropriated- didn't do much for me.

But my personal feelings about Shepard Fairey has nothing to do with whether or not his work should be exhibited.

[–] FuglyDuck@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago (2 children)

If you really wanna get down to it, the vast majority of art is derivative.

Would I buy it? No. Is it similar to others? Absolutely. That doesn’t necessarily make it bad.(Also, check out cop’s face. That’s a skull.) (also? This guy is Native American, not white. This is an exhibit of native art.)

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

You need to re-read the article. The guy I am talking about, Shepard Fairey, is white. And it was his art that was the issue. And by 'appropriate,' I mean he directly takes their pictures, slightly modifies them, then sells them. He got sued for doing it for the Obama photo because it's just a copy of an AP photo he added some colors to and the word 'Hope' at the bottom.

[–] FuglyDuck@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Ah.

So he’s a copycat of Andrew Warhol.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 1 points 1 year ago

Basically.

[–] match@pawb.social 1 points 1 year ago

The picture that AP provides is Thomas Breeze Marcus, the other artist mentioned in the article

[–] match@pawb.social 3 points 1 year ago

I don't think it's very good but apparently it was impactful enough as a criticism of the police to get the exhibit delayed (and expose the Mesa city government's bootlicking)

[–] Fisk400@feddit.nu 12 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Is this the first time they have encountered political statements in art?

[–] girlfreddy@lemmy.ca 9 points 1 year ago

Neo-nazi America doesn't believe in free speech for others, only themselves.

[–] jollyrogue@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 year ago

Probably. They don’t put anything too provocative in hotels.

[–] grue@lemmy.world 7 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

That's a terrible headline. It had me thinking this thread was going to be about overreach of copyright law -- shit like "moral rights" that presume to let an author dictate what an owner is allowed to do to a work even after it's been sold -- not censorship.

[–] GrammatonCleric@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

Shepard Fairy is a fucking graf legend