BYU and major league censorship in art?

[_Dakotah]

A few years ago BYU hosted the Rodin sculpture exhibit. They viewed and had to approve in advance (two years minimum) every piece in the exhibit and agree to show all of them or they got none of them.

Then these jokers got the exhibit and the head guy at the University (think it was Holland then) censored two sculptures after the show was open to the public.

He did not like the sculptures and had them moved out of the exhibit hall even though they were in the catalogue of the exhibit.

Agree to one thing and then go against it after you have the publicity... is not how things are done among pleasant company.

[_Polygamy Porter]

Hmmm, I wonder if one of the sculptures that he did not like was "The Thinker".

We can't have THINKERS on campus, let alone neekid ones!

Opp! I spoke too soon!

http://www.lds-mormon.com/thinker.shtml

Bateman did remove "The Thinker" from the November 1997 exhibit...

Oh the quotes from the above link are choice!

The newly-banned sculpture, "The Thinker," is by far Rodin's most famous. BYU officials, however, seem fearless of -- or maybe that should be oblivious to -- the negative publicity that might result from this latest move in their crusade against the famous artist. "We can not back down from our principles," said Bateman on Wednesday, in justificaiton of the ban.

"'The Thinker' does not represent the sort of activity that we believe is appropriate for the BYU setting," said BYU official Alan Wilkins. In contrasting "The Thinker" to Rodin's sculpture "The Kiss," which was withdrawn earlier this week, Wilkins said, "Nudity is not the issue here. Admitiedly, nudity has its place in private and personal surroundings. But" he continued, "the administration has decided that this sculpture is inappropriate under any and all circumstances."

Too bad Rodin did not do a sculpture called "The Dry Hump"...

Before being admitted to the university, all BYU students sign a statement committing them to abide by university and church policy. Although the Honor Code statement does not specifically prohibit thinking or similar activities, most students, staff, faculty and administration believe that is what is meant.


"Any student who signed the Honor Code should know: when the president speaks, the discussion is over," wrote one student, John Wiener, in a letter to the university newspaper on Monday.

The university administration has also cited its responsibility to protect the many school children who are scheduled to attend the art exhibit. "I am infinitely more concerned that my children finish school with their morals intact, than that they learn how to think," said Wayne Layton, father of eight.

Even with the new ban, many parents, including Layton, have expressed doubts about allowing their children to attend the exhibit along with their school classes. "This so-called Art -- how is it any different from a Las Vegas peep show, that's what I'd like to know," said parent organizer Cynthia Rosyska. "It's just not the sort of thing I want my children exposed to. Utah valley is ripe for pornography, and I don't think we need to encourage it."

DISCLAIMER--these are not true newspaper articles. They are just for fun.

[Guest]

A few years ago BYU hosted the Rodin sculpture exhibit. They viewed and had to approve in advance (two years minimum) every piece in the exhibit and agree to show all of them or they got none of them.

Then these jokers got the exhibit and the head guy at the University (think it was Holland then) censored two sculptures after the show was open to the public.

He did not like the sculptures and had them moved out of the exhibit hall even though they were in the catalogue of the exhibit.

Agree to one thing and then go against it after you have the publicity... is not how things are done among pleasant company.

Another data point indicating that the sexually uptight cannot differentiate in any way, shape, or form between art and pornography.

The funny thing is that Rodin's sculptures are not in the least explicit in terms of showing human genetilia (if I remember them correctly).

But I hear that BYU is becoming much more liberal these days; rumor has it that the bookstore will now sell Boy George albums.

I have a friend who teaches in the Art Dept at the Y. He used to teach gospel doctrine, and one day he weaved his passion for art into the lesson showing slides of art to the class including, you guessed it, Michelangelo's David.

I think you all can guess more or less what happened next.

[_bcspace]

People have their agency. When you have your own college, you may do as you wish. Those who don't have their own college may choose to attend....or not....or make their own.

Threads like this show many to be afflicted by the dream police. Free yourself of the dream police by becoming LDS....or not.

[_guy sajer]

When you have your own college, you may do as you wish.

Uh, not true. Try again.

[_bcspace]

When you have your own college, you may do as you wish.

Uh, not true.

Quite true.

You may not choose to display whatever art you wish in your own college? Try this experiement. Buy a little piece of property, put a shack on it, call it the 'College of Art', and display your art. Depending on what you consider art, you might have to make sure you are a certain distance away from schools, but it can be done.

Now...choose you this day.

[_guy sajer]

When you have your own college, you may do as you wish.

Uh, not true.

Quite true.

You may not choose to display whatever art you wish in your own college? Try this experiement. Buy a little piece of property, put a shack on it, call it the 'College of Art', and display your art. Depending on what you consider art, you might have to make sure you are a certain distance away from schools, but it can be done.

Now...choose you this day.

This statement is true only to the extent that the following statements are true:

"It's a free country, I can do whatever I want."

"It's my business, I can do with it whatever I want."

Do I really need to explain to you why these statements are not true and why your statement that a private university can do whatever it wants is also not true?

This is a general statement, not one related to the specific issue of censoring art.

Now, as for censoring art, I am not aware of any rules, laws, etc. that prohibit it, but I think one can reasonably debate as to whether what BYU did is consistent with the ideal of a university, or whether it is appropriate to request art exhibits only then to censor them.

I'm inclined to believe that what BYU did is neither consistent with the ideal nor appropriate. I understand, however, how one's loyalty to the tribe will cause them to see otherwise.

[_Jason Bourne]

Hmmm, I wonder if one of the sculptures that he did not like was "The Thinker".

We can't have THINKERS on campus, let alone neekid ones!

Opp! I spoke too soon!

http://www.lds-mormon.com/thinker.shtml

Bateman did remove "The Thinker" from the November 1997 exhibit...

Oh the quotes from the above link are choice!

The newly-banned sculpture, "The Thinker," is by far Rodin's most famous. BYU officials, however, seem fearless of -- or maybe that should be oblivious to -- the negative publicity that might result from this latest move in their crusade against the famous artist. "We can not back down from our principles," said Bateman on Wednesday, in justificaiton of the ban.

"'The Thinker' does not represent the sort of activity that we believe is appropriate for the BYU setting," said BYU official Alan Wilkins. In contrasting "The Thinker" to Rodin's sculpture "The Kiss," which was withdrawn earlier this week, Wilkins said, "Nudity is not the issue here. Admitiedly, nudity has its place in private and personal surroundings. But" he continued, "the administration has decided that this sculpture is inappropriate under any and all circumstances."

Too bad Rodin did not do a sculpture called "The Dry Hump"...

Before being admitted to the university, all BYU students sign a statement committing them to abide by university and church policy. Although the Honor Code statement does not specifically prohibit thinking or similar activities, most students, staff, faculty and administration believe that is what is meant.


"Any student who signed the Honor Code should know: when the president speaks, the discussion is over," wrote one student, John Wiener, in a letter to the university newspaper on Monday.

The university administration has also cited its responsibility to protect the many school children who are scheduled to attend the art exhibit. "I am infinitely more concerned that my children finish school with their morals intact, than that they learn how to think," said Wayne Layton, father of eight.

Even with the new ban, many parents, including Layton, have expressed doubts about allowing their children to attend the exhibit along with their school classes. "This so-called Art -- how is it any different from a Las Vegas peep show, that's what I'd like to know," said parent organizer Cynthia Rosyska. "It's just not the sort of thing I want my children exposed to. Utah valley is ripe for pornography, and I don't think we need to encourage it."

DISCLAIMER--these are not true newspaper articles. They are just for fun.

Wow. They really banned the Thinker? Amazing. I even think that is rather over the top.

[_karl61]

in fifty years they will see that they were a little immature in their thinking ;)

here's another sign of immaturity or what ever you would like to call it:


http://www.signaturebookslibrary.org/ha ... r3.htm#BYU

[_KimberlyAnn]

Many years ago, when I was a young, new mother and working in Young Women's, I had a sleepover at my home. Everything went well until Sunday morning when the mothers of a few of the girls pulled me aside in the hallway. They wanted to speak with me privately in one of the classrooms.

Several of the young women who stayed at my home told their mothers that I had naked people on my living room wall and, naturally, those mothers were quite concerned. I explained to them that the naked people were in a framed poster of Matisse's The Dance with Nasturtiums! I couldn't believe those young girls couldn't distinguish between a beautiful piece of art depicting the human body and base pornography!

As it happened, one of the mothers looked up the artwork later, and also believed it was inappropriate for her daughter to see. So I agreed to take it off the wall if the girls came to my home again. It was ridiculous.

Behold! The offending artwork:



KA