Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Help Make the Wojnarowicz Gallery of Censored Art a Reality!

Friends,

As you may know from our latest press release, we have decided to try another way of bringing back this censored art into -- or rather, close to -- the National Portrait Gallery.

We would like to set up the David Wojnarowicz Memorial Gallery for Censored Art on public property right outside the National Portrait Gallery so people coming to the museum will still have the choice to see all the art from the Hide/Seek exhibition and make up their own minds about it.

Maybe it'll be a big tent, maybe a trailer or an RV, who knows? We sure don't. We're just a web guy and an artist, so we need as much help as we can get. Email mblasenstein@gmail.com or silencestillequalsdeath@gmail.com if you think you can help with any of this stuff:

  1. Legal: Getting the appropriate permits
  2. Structure: Anyone got a spare trailer lying around?
  3. Storage(?): If the structure is something that will have to be put up and taken down every day, we'll need a place to store it and the gallery's contents
  4. Power and Heat: It's dark and cold in DC in winter
  5. Equipment and Supplies: Something to play a video, a desk or booth for the person(s) staffing the gallery, information for visitors, a laptop with internet connection, etc.
  6. Website (maybe): A simple outpost on the web, unless another site wants to include the gallery's info
  7. Security: Suffice it to say, there are people out there who don't want the public to see this art
  8. Volunteers! People to run and staff the gallery. If a lot of people just put in a few hours each, we can keep this thing going till Feb. 13.
  9. Anything else?
The anti-gay, anti-free speech forces want this art to go away. Let's disappoint them.

Thank you,
Mike Blasenstein
Michael Dax Iacovone

2 comments:

  1. Wojnarowicz was an immensely incredible artist and his early death from aids was a dark sad day. I was horrified to hear that the Smithsonian caved in...if we let these right wing censors have their way our institutions will be filled with nothing but Hummel figurines! I applaud your actions Max & Michael! I wish that we could get thousands of volunteers to stand in the gallery with Ipads one after another for the length of the exhibit...

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  2. I have posted this on facebook hoping that will help you guys. I would love to volunteer ... I live in Chicago, but maybe I could manage to come to DC to help ... my issue is money ... and time since I am a full-time grad student in Chicago ...

    But I AM considering this closely and will keep you posted and in my thoughts.

    Love you both,
    Carrie

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