Tired "provocative" art
(CNSNews.com) - The Miller Brewing Company, a sponsor of this weekend's homosexual "leather" street fair in San Francisco, has asked to have its logo removed from an advertising poster that has offended some Christians.
The advertisement portrays Christ and his disciples as half-naked sado-masochists.
"While Miller has supported the Folsom Street Fair for several years, we take exception to the poster the organizing committee developed this year. We understand some individuals may find the imagery offensive and we have asked the organizers to remove our logo from the poster effective immediately," the company told Cybercast News Service on Tuesday.
The group behind the ad said it was not intended to be either "pro-religion or anti-religion," but the poster -- a parody of Leonardo da Vinci's painting "The Last Supper" -- continued to draw fire from Christian organizations on Tuesday.
Of course the response of the Folsom Street Fair was not "to be particularly pro-religion or anti-religion with this poster; the image is intended only to be reminiscent of the 'Last Supper' painting." I wonder if somebody printed images throughout San Francisco using the half-naked sado-masochists displayed as the The Damned in Michelangelo's Last Judgment if they would not think that this was an attack?
Brian Saint-Paul at Inside Catholic had commented on this story.
Maybe I'm jaded, but these artists are running out of ideas. As far as I can tell, all they do is take some recognizable pose or staging from a famous work, and then replace the figures with a bunch of trussed-up gay guys. I mean, that's the formula here, right?
Well that's original.
I'm not overly offended, though. This is the kind of tired "provocative" art you'll find every week, in every City Paper in the country.
He is quite right. Using Jesus in images in a blaspamous way is all to common and about as surprising as seeing commercials while watching TV.
BRUSSELS Compiled from (AFP) and BBC — Catholic bishops in Belgium have protested a TV ad depicting a pot-bellied, hippy Jesus performing miracles and picking up scantily-clad girls up in a nightclub, a church spokesman said Friday.
The ad shows a long-haired hippy Jesus grooving along as he tries to get into a nightclub and is refused entry by the bouncers. Jesus makes the sign of the cross and sweeps aside the bouncers, shrinking them so they are left in his wake as dwarves. This Plug TV version of Jesus then drinks whisky at the bar and magically turns two brown haired frumpy women into blonde babes wearing bikini tops and red horns. The Jesus character then disappears into a huge limousine with the women but his attention is distracted by an advertisement for Plug TV before he is recalled by God who is standing on a cloud, wearing a T shirt with "Number one dad" written on it.
Boooor-ing. The reason that Christians don't get really realy riled up about this is that there attemps at blasphemy are all so boring. Though once again it is a left-handed compliment towards Christianity. As G.K. Chesterton noted in Heretics.
Blasphemy is an artistic effect, because blasphemy depends upon a philosophic conviction. Blasphemy depends upon belief and is fading with it. If any one doubts this, let him sit down seriously and try to think blasphemous thoughts about Thor. I think his family will find him at the end of the day in a state of some exhaustion.
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I wish these people would catch on. I couldn't care less if they portray Jesus as an aging hippie with a pot belly. But Jesus involved in sin is a problem. Even Jesus-as-embezzling-thief would be offensive. Jesus, indulging wantonly in the kind of behavior that we don't want our children to even catch sight of, is worse.
I remain highly offended at this sort of thing, and I will stay in that position on principle. If something completely abhorrent morphs into acceptably "old hat" due simply to regular, interrupted repetition, then the terrorists have won.
I'll keep doing my best not to sound like an hysterical scold. But I'm not going to shut up to make it easy for them.
We should all e-mail Miller about this, and close with the words: "Hey, Miller: This Bud's for you!"
Did you see this one?
A sculpture depicting Christ as a well-endowed dog, The artist said he wanted to stimulate debate about religion and freedom of expression in the wake of a row over cartoons of the prophet Mohammed. Ha!
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5gZqr34EWUNVb7aGP8X_BI1MOiQEA
I suspect that the group did intend the ad to be anti-religion. If their goal was just to provoke, why choose "The Last Supper"? Why not parody "Nighthawk" or "Dogs Playing Poker"? These folks knew they had little to lose, and that even bad press is good press. They've lost nothing -- while Miller has removed its logo from the ad, the company's still supporting the Folsom Street Fair.
Make a little talking puppet with your wallet and tell Miller you won't buy their products until they apologize.
Use a high squeaky voice while you're doing it, if you like the effect.
Seriously, are they nuts? Does anybody in the regular world want to live next door to people who created or appeared or approved this poster? Does this advance their demand to be accepted into society one millimeter?
As to the participants in the Folsom Street Fair, they, poor people, have no boundaries left, God help them understand how they were destroyed.
All of this shows us why radical notions like teen celibacy-chastity and faithful, life-long marriages are considered so bizarre among the elite set.
Picking up on the famous GKC quote... you never hear about these so-called "artists" creating "provocative/blasphemous" art on subjects like Zeus, Apollo, Gaia, the Sun god, Moon goddess, etc. Because they know that (a) no one would pay attention, (b) no one would "get" the point their attemtping to make. Additionally, you never see them attempt to create... lets say, a giant Star of David made out of tiny swatstikas. Because they know that they'd (rightly) get hammered by everyone for being offensive and anti-semetic, and would be forced to take it down.
They never attempt to display an "artwork" with an image of Allah or Mohammed, let alone one in a homoerotic position. Gee, do you think it's because they're afraid of being car bombed or having their heads sliced off by a sword-wielding terrorist? Hmmmm....
I think, the real reason why they continue to attack only Christianity is because, deep down & subconsciously, they know that that is where the Truth is. And, to borrow a tired movie phrase, "They can't handle the truth" because they know that the current lifestyles they're leading is contrary to that unmistakeable and irrefutible Truth.
You quoted a portion of the press release from the Folsom Street Fair. When you read the whole thing it is clear how silly it is.
http://www.folsomstreetfair.com/fair-press.php?relNum=77
And compare it with my parody:
September 25, 2008
FOLSOM STREET EVENTS™ LAUNCHES POSTER DESIGN FOR 25th ANNUAL FOLSOM STREET FAIR™
Poster image draws inspiration from the annual Islamic Hajj, in a poster entitled: Masjid al-Harem.
Folsom Street Events has released its latest poster design for the 25TH Annual Folsom Street Fair. This year, the official poster, drawn by renowned artist Theo van Gogh, uses well-known community members as players in a strikingly original interpretation of the annual, worldwide pilgrimage to Mecca. The poster is the second in a series that draws from well-known paintings, album covers, movie posters, or other iconic images. Community members celebrate exuberant sexuality by donning their S/M regalia, and dancing around not the Kaaba, but a 10 story phallus.
According to Andy Copper, Board President, “We are extremely pleased with the outcome of this poster, and we are looking forward to a particularly inspirational event season. There is no intention to be particularly pro-religion or anti-religion with this poster; the image is intended only to celebrate the sacred roots of raw sexuality. It is a distinctive representation of diversity with women and men, people of all colors and sexual orientations. Just as Mecca draws people of all races throughout the world, we hope people from all continents will come come celebrate with us!”
Folsom Street Events acknowledges that many of the people in the leather and fetish communities are spiritual and that this poster image is a way of expressing that side of the community’s interests and beliefs. This year, Folsom Street Fair is dedicated to “San Francisco Values,” previously used against the San Francisco community for its support of sexual diversity and now used by Folsom Street Events as a way to reclaim power by the fetish community.
Andy Copper, adds “We hope that people will enjoy the artistry for what it is – nothing more or less. Many people choose to speculate on deeper meanings. This is one artist’s imagining of a pilgrimage that is at one both sexual and sacred - all we did was adopt the iconography of Mecca and make it our own. The irony is that homosexuality has a long and wonderful history in Islam. In truth, we are going to produce a series of inspired poster images over the next few years. Next year’s poster ad may take inspiration from American Gothic by Grant Wood, the flag raising at Iwo Jima, or even Raphael's 'The School of Athens' - community members are already preparing for roles in that one!"
When asked about the murder of the poster artist, Theo van Gogh, and the worldwide rioting that has claimed dozens of lives, Copper said: "I guess it wouldn’t be Folsom Street Fair without offending some extreme members of the global community, though.”