New York Art Shuttered After Bush Monkey Portrait

[KG]

Published on Tuesday, December 14, 2004 by Reuters
New York Art Shuttered After Bush Monkey Portrait
by Larry Fine

NEW YORK - A portrait of President Bush using monkeys to form his image led to the closure of a New York art exhibition over the weekend and anguished protests on Monday over freedom of expression.


Twenty-three-year-old painter Christopher Savido poses with his painting 'Bush Monkeys,' a portrait of President Bush, at the Animal gallery on New York City's Lower East Side, December 13, 2004. The portrait of Bush using monkeys to form his image led to the closure of a New York art exhibition over the weekend and anguished protests on Monday over freedom of expression. (Mike Segar/Reuters)

"Bush Monkeys," a small acrylic on canvas by Chris Savido, created the stir at the Chelsea Market public space, leading the market's managers to close down the 60-piece show that was scheduled to stay up for the next month.

The show featured art from the upcoming issue of Animal Magazine, a quarterly publication featuring emerging artists.

"We had tons of people, like more than 2,000 people show up for the opening on Thursday night," said show organizer Bucky Turco. "Then this manager saw the piece and the guy just kind of flipped out. 'The show is over. Get this work down or I'm gonna arrest you,' he said. It's been kind of wild."

Turco took the show down on Saturday and moved the art work to his small downtown Animal Gallery. Calls to the management of Chelsea Market for comment were not returned.

From afar, the painting offers a likeness of Bush, but when you get closer you see the image is made up of chimpanzees or monkeys swimming in a marsh.

>>>>> MORE http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/1214-03.htm

i say: 'rock on, bro!'

[Stephanie]

1. Wow - I didn't realize this was at Chelsea Market

I shop there every weekend - it's a block from my house. I'd like to know what "manager" took the art down. I might have to find another place to buy groceries.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

4. Is this a whole foods market

the one at Chelsea Mercantile, or another market? Don't know NYC that well, just curious....

[Stephanie]

6. It's at 9th Ave & 16th St.

It's an old Nabisco cracker factory. It's a beautiful old building that's been renovated but retains the industrial look. The factory was closed in the 50's and moved upstate. I don't know what was in there after that - probably warehouse.

There are wholesale businesses and they all have retail outlets. So there's a flower market, a butcher, fish market, Italian imports, organic dairy, Thai food, wine store, several bakeries, big produce market. Prices are good because they are all also selling wholesale. I really love it. Beautiful brass sculptures. Upstairs are offices and studios for Oxygen network, the Food Channel, Major League Baseball. It's one long hallway, from 9th Ave. to 10th Ave., with stores on either side. Sort of like Pike Market in Seattle but stores rather than stands. They usually have art in the main hallway. I did not notice any when I was there on Saturday though.

One thing that has changed recently is Emeril has decided to tape his show there, so now it is crowded with tourists, which really annoys me, of course. I wonder if that had anything to do with it???

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

7. Probably

the people going to the taping would see the painting, and it would be harder for the media to ignore this.

[annabanana]

2. They are finding a new space...

And I expect that the artist in question has already sold out his $300 prints of the work in question. (I hope he prints up some posters..... more in my price range)

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

3. Its really a shame

that artists are being censored like this. It's what one expects in a dictatorship, not a democracy.

[annabanana]

5. It's more than a "shame"........

It should be a call to arms for every patriotic American.

[Cobalt Violet]

8. It's time for the 1st amendment types to be as forceful as the 2nd ...

amendment types.

[Carl Brennan]

9. Can we get a visual on that art? Man, I want to see that and make a poster

and/or protest sign out of it. :bounce:

[Undercover Owl]

18. yeah!

That painting looked really cool!
}(

[orpupilofnature57]

10. Now I know, shrub burnt Beatle album's as child, HARD WORK !

[gjb]

11. Entarte Kunst redux. At least the Nazi's had the self confidence to ..

exhibit the art of their enemies.

http://stevenlehrer.com/degenerate_art.htm

[UdoKier]

12. If an innocuous painting like this is shutting down galleries in MANHATTAN

We are in big trouble as a nation.

REALLY.

[Stephanie]

13. Not only Manhattan, but a gay/art gallery neighborhood of Manhattan

Chelsea is the current hot art district - what Soho was in the 80's. And it's been the main gay neighborhood for the past 5-10 years. So if this is happening here, no place is safe. The galleries of Chelsea should rise up to protest against this censorship. And so should every bar on 8th Avenue. And so should I and all my neighbors.

[maveric]

14. The story was written by Larry Fine? The middle stooge?

I didnt know he was still alive.

[Must_B_Free]

15. Geez, I guess I won't bother to

bring "Shit-christ" to NY...

[orpupilofnature57]

16. shrub is as much a destroyer as bin-whats that guy's name again

oh ya protected,more than us from this daddies boy fuck.

[DeepModem Mom]

17. See this thread for close-up, and link to purchase a print of this work --

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x2824135