Kara Walker is an African American artist who challenges race, sexuality, violence and gender in a lot of her works. Some of her artworks can be viewed as very controversial and graphic, due to the display of violence and nudity. In 1999, the Detroit Institute of Art removed one of Walker’s pieces entitled “A Means to an End: A Shadow Drama in Five Acts.” The piece removed reflects the inhumane behavior and atrocities committed in America during slavery. Additionally, Newark Public Library covered a piece by Walker called The moral arc of history ideally bends towards justice but just as soon as not curves back around toward barbarism, sadism, and unrestrained chaos after employees and patrons complained about the artwork. This piece depicts a white man holding the head of a naked black woman to his groin. The library later uncovered the artwork and allowed it to be seen. Her comic use of exaggerating the black female features adds a laughter effect to her works of art. Should we condone censoring art that some viewers may find graphic, shocking and uncomfortable? What about freedom of speech?
Do you think there is ever a reason to remove art from an exhibition? What elements of laughter did you see in Walker’s works?
4 Comments
I think if it was such a controversy, why was it put up in the first place? Walker has every right with freedom of speech to portray the truths of slavery in her artwork. She likes to create the truth, and in her works she also adds some humor to gauge the audience even more. Her use of excessive stereotyping is not meant to cause great debates. It is meant for people to understand who and what she is drawing and understand the meanings behind her artwork.
Yes, her work is very controversial, but she has the right to freedom of speech. These pieces of work are not in children’s museums, they are in libraries and bigtime museums. I do not think that her work should be hidden because it displays a truth that no one else dares to do. Kara Walker makes this art in order to invoke emotion from her viewers, and by covering up this art she is ripped of this abilitiy. This artwork allows people to see something they may not have seen before, with a little humor added in, and should not be taken away
Walker claims that the comedy in her art allow for people to be tricked into lingering, and to think about the art for a few moments. If the subject was not portrayed with such vulgarity, or at times, humor, people would be inclined to look away or disregard her art due to the unpleasant nature of images such as these aforementioned. This is extremely clever. I think modern society has taken one step forward and two steps back, and by this I mean open discussion in public venues or social instances. If a white person brings up this topic and has any sort of strong stance, they are considered racist. Perhaps they are just open to healthy discussion, and want to talk about this subject with someone who has a different perspective, like an African American friend or associate. Dave Chappelle is hilarious, but I also think that is humor is somewhat ingenious. As a black man, he is allowed to make light of this subject. A white man cannot, understandably. Also, he makes fun of he ignorance and absurdity embodied by organizations like the KKK. His motive may be more for the benefit of his comedy career, but nonetheless is facilitating of the necessity for this topic to be put out in the open, and not swept under the rug.
I found it interesting that a lot African-Americans were very offended and disapproving of the way that Walker portrayed them, especially because she is an African-American herself. I can see both sides of the argument for the piece in Newark Public Library. On one hand, the image is very dark and graphic and some parents may not want their young children exposed to such an image. However, the piece also has a lot to offer in terms of telling a story to reveal the sexual violence associated with slavery.