'A Fire In My Belly' Protest This Sunday In NYC (EXPLICIT VIDEO)

The art world has been up in arms regarding the Smithsonian's recent censorship of artist David Wojnarowicz's video "A Fire in My Belly." After the National Portrait Gallery was bullied by GOP members John Boehner and Eric Cantor to remove parts of the piece that included a crucifix covered in ants as a metaphor to AIDS, major backers threatened to pull funding in protest. As a result, Martin Sullivan, the director of the National Portrait Gallery has resigned.

The New Museum (as well as institutions around the country) has been showing the film in its lobby since the incident. This Sunday, December 19th, show your support for the film and its message by joining a protest from the Metropolitan Museum to Smithsonian's Cooper-Hewitt. The protest begins at 1pm at the MET and participants will be given a paper mask of artist David Wojnarowicz in hopes of raising awareness of the incident.

(via Animal New York)

WATCH for yourself:

Comments

[politis]

11:00 PM on 12/19/2010

Could you take this video down. The original video by David did not use the Diamanda Gallas music. It was silent. Some anonymous third party attached the soundtrack and it misrepresents the video.

[dmezz1962]

09:20 AM on 12/19/2010

Well when they put up an artist rendering of Muhammad then I'll listen to all these artist. It's always open season on Jesus or Mary but OMG do anything against the Muslims and your on someone kill list

[whiteconch]

10:15 PM on 02/06/2011

why does jesus get so much s#$% projected on him by "believers" as well as 'non-believers'!??
. . personally, i feel sorry for him..or maybe just embarrassed for humanity..and i think this has less to do with jesus and more to do with some dude's hangups. it is plain boring. not shocking. just a complete yawner. and again..my apologies to jesus whom the majority of world hangs their hang-ups on! i have a feeling he really doesn't let it bother him,..i hope..

[BlackYowe]

03:38 PM on 12/18/2010

I am glad they dumped this garbage from the exhibit at the Smithsonian. It's poorly done shock video. It's not even very original. Let people who want to see it watch it on YouTube, its amateur and not worthy of a second glance.

[Ruben Carbajal]

06:29 PM on 12/18/2010

That's your opinion, and you are entitled to voice it. It's one of the great freedoms we have in this country. It's also the reason why the piece should be allowed to stay at The Smithsonian and why Boehner and Cantor's actions are despicable. If we only protect the expressions of speech we agree with, it renders that right empty and devoid of meaning.

[BlackYowe]

08:43 PM on 12/18/2010

Yes its a free country and I like excercising my freedom.

[dmezz1962]

09:21 AM on 12/19/2010

I never saw a drawing of Muhammad there..I wonder why that is?

[teddy DeMint]

10:52 PM on 12/18/2010

I can see why you would say that, but museums don't just pick random works of art from some pile in their basement based on what looks 'original' (as if there really were such a thing). Wojnarowicz's work is part of a much larger narrative of American art, hence the Smithsonian's (first) choice to include it in the exhibition. What he did, especially in "A Fire in my Belly" was important for its time and possibly even more relevant now than it was back then. Art is not always pretty or shiny or fun to look at and we shouldn't expect it to be.

[BlackYowe]

01:18 AM on 12/19/2010

The emperor has no cloths. I have a fine arts degree and cra_p is still cra_p no matter who makes it.