Dangerous Ideas: "A Fire in My Belly" - The Problem of Censorship in American Museums

Location

Saints Tekakwitha and Serra Hall, 200 - Humanities Center

Free

On November 30, 2010, the National Portrait Gallery took the unusual step of removing a work of art from public view in response to political pressure. David Wojnarowicz's unfinished film "A Fire in My Belly"  had been on display as part of "Hide/Seek: Difference and Desire in American Portraiture," an exhibition promoted by the museum as "the first major exhibition to focus on sexual difference."  Supporters of Wojnarowicz, who died of AIDS-related causes in 1992, decried the decision made by Wayne Clough, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, and accusations of censorship swirled throughout the cultural community.  This presentation revisits the controversy surrounding "A Fire in My Belly," the sympathetic acts of defiance it triggered in other American museums, and lingering concerns about censorship in contemporary museum practice. 

Discussion led by Derrick R. Cartwright, PhD | Director of University Galleries and Associate Professor of Art History

Refreshments Provided

About the Dangerous Ideas Series:

The Humanities Center presents a series of panel discussions on "Dangerous Ideas". Lively and provocative, these sessions will feature USD faculty discussing controversial ideas and theories in the arts, sciences and politics. Among other things, the perceived tension between freedom of expression and the contemporary vogue for "safe spaces" and "trigger warnings" will be explored. 

Select Tuesdays of the month.

• Tuesday, September 19 at 4-5:30 p.m.
• Tuesday, October 17 at 4-5:30 p.m.
• Tuesday, November 14 at 4-5:30 p.m.
• Tuesday, December 12 at 4-5:30 p.m.