Hide/Seek Timeline: January 2011

Under Construction

January 5, 2011

PEN American Center. "Letter to the Smithsonian Board of Regents".

January 10, 2011

PEN American Center. "PEN Calls on Smithsonian Institution to Reinstate Controversial Video.

January 11, 2011

Blasenstein, Mike, and Michael Dax Iacovone: Museum of Censored Art, January 11, 2011 Press release announcing opening of Museum of Censored Art on January 13, 2011, in Washington, D.C.

Cole, Merrill (Senior Fulbright Research Fellow residing in Berlin). "WikiLeaks and David Wojnarowicz: A Perspective from Berlin". Huffington Post. Blog.

Hedges, Jim. "Smithsonian Stands Firm on Censorship, Congressional Checkbook Trumps Constitution". Huffington Post. Blog.

January 12, 2011

Smithsonian Institutions. Newsdesk. Announcement of Hide/Seek Scholarly Forum on Saturday January 29, 2011

January 13, 2011

Catholic Leage. "MoMA HOSTS VILE VIDEO"

January 13, 2011

New York's Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) has acquired the video showing ants crawling all over Jesus on the Cross that was withdrawn from the Smithsonian Institution on November 30 after a protest by the Catholic League, and complaints from congressmen. MoMA also has the original 13-minute version; the video is being shown, starting today.

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments as follows:

In Tucson, President Barack Obama correctly noted that "our discourse has become so sharply polarized" that it has disfigured our society. He made note of the "lack of civility" which marks our culture, beckoning us to "sharpen our instincts for empathy." And just one day later, MoMA announced that he was wrong. It wants a sharply polarized society; it delights in incivility; and it abhors empathy. That is why it has decided to assault Christian sensibilities by hosting the vile video.

"We really do live in a time when anything can be hailed as a work of art. This has naturally led to a proliferation of pretentious and often pathological nonsense in the art world." Those words were penned ten years ago by noted art critic Roger Kimball. As evidenced by the reaction to this "artwork" by the artistic community, nothing has changed.

Unlike the Smithsonian, which is federally funded, MoMA is largely supported by fat cats like Glenn D. Lowry, the museum's director, thus alleviating some of our objections. Lowry makes over $2 million a year and lives for free in a $6 million condo atop the museum. Unlike the rest of us, he pays no income tax on his housing.

Looks like the artistic community got fleeced twice: once by embracing the "pathological nonsense" of this masterpiece, and once by the corporate welfare queen who runs—and lives in—the joint.

Contact Lowry: glenn_lowry@moma.org

January 14, 2011

Gilchrist, Aaron. "Museum of Censored Art Pops Up in D.C. Controversial video gets temporary home near Portrait Gallery". Updated 11:09 AM EST, Fri, Jan 14, 2011.

January 15, 2011

Katz, Jonathan David, and David Ward. "DISPUTATIONS: Jesus! The curators of ‘Hide/Seek’ respond to Jed Perl’s article about ‘A Fire in my Belly.’" New Republic. January 15, 2011 | 12:00 am

Perl, Jed. "DISPUTATIONS: Looking for Trouble. Jed Perl responds to the curators of ‘Hide/Seek.’" New Republic, lJanuary 15, 2011 | 12:00 am.

January 18, 2011

Taylor, Kate. "Smithsonian Chief Defends Withdrawal of Video". NewYorkTimes.com, January 18, 2011, 12:36 pm.

January 27, 2011

Board of Trustees, Smithsonian Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. An Open Letter

From Our Board

An Open Letter from the Board of Trustees, January 2011

In recent weeks, there has been much discussion and concern, both internally and publicly, regarding the decision to remove a work by David Wojnarowicz from the National Portrait Gallery exhibition Hide/Seek: Difference and Desire in American Portraiture. This decision raises crucial questions-for us, for our visitors, artists, museum supporters, and colleagues-about the role and responsibility of publicly supported museums to engage with complex and sometimes sensitive topics.

We would like first to commend the National Portrait Gallery for having the courage to undertake the kind of timely, exploratory exhibition appropriate to an institution with a scholarly agenda. As we understand it, many museums turned down the opportunity to present this show.

Art has always and will continue to raise or respond to cultural and social issues in the world-it does not back away. It challenges us all to confront the ways in which we think about our collective past, present, and future.

The attempt by any individual or group to restrict the content-not only artistic, but cultural, historical, and scientific-that may be shown in an institution that serves the public as a whole is counter not only to the founding American principle of freedom of thought and expression, but also to the spirit of inquiry at the core of the Smithsonian's mission. Hence we are deeply troubled by the precedent the Institution's leadership has set with its decision. We believe that bowing to pressure with regard to the works on view in its galleries harms the integrity of the individual Smithsonian units and the Institution as a whole. If dissension arises over the presentation of a piece, then rather than remove it, that is the very moment to initiate conversation so that all perceptions may be heard in an effort to create greater awareness and understanding.

We understand the complexity of the Smithsonian's current situation and appreciate the scale of pressures put on its leadership and are encouraged by Secretary Clough's recent statements about a desire to continue the dialogue on this important issue. We look forward to participating in this conversation and welcome your thoughts and suggestions as well.

Please visit our Facebook page to leave your thoughts and comments.

January 29, 2011

Smithsonian Institutions. Newsdesk. Announcement of Hide/Seek Scholarly Forum on Saturday January 29, 2011

See also: Hide/Seek.org

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