The Chris Ofili Controversy Essay example - 2472 Words

The Chris Ofili Controversy Most people may not know who Chris Ofili is, but chances are that many of them know one of his works, his painting â€Å"The Holy Virgin Mary†, displayed at the Brooklyn Museum of Art’s â€Å"Sensation† exhibition in 1999. The painting was extremely controversial because of Mary’s exposed breast being made of elephant dung and because of the porno cutouts surrounding Mary. Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and others, saying that such works were not appropriate for public display, immediately attacked the painting, along with the entire showcase of art by different artists. These sharp criticisms were an extreme injustice, condemning the work â€Å"The Holy Virgin Mary† based on prejudiced views of what is and what is not†¦show more content†¦In order to gain a better understanding of how Ofili sees the work, it is important to look at the background of the artist. Chris Ofili was born in Manchester, England, though his parents were both born in L agos. It is interesting to note that Ofili was raised as a Catholic, and even served as an altar boy. He also continues to attend church, though not regularly. By the time his â€Å"Holy Virgin Mary† was displayed, Ofili was already a rising young artist in England, having been included three times in the â€Å"Whitworth Young Contemporaries† shows and winning a British Council Travel fellowship to Zimbabwe, where he claims to have had an epiphany. While in Zimbabwe, he hit upon the idea of sticking elephant dung to his art, and began using it regularly. Ofili liked working with it so much that he not only used it in his paintings, but mounted his works on clumps of it, saying, â€Å"It’s a way of raising the paintings up from the ground and giving them a feeling that they’ve come from the earth rather than simply being hung on a wall† (qtd. in Cosentino 2). He enjoys using elephant dung so much that he plans to continue using it, and althoug h his first batch of dung was from Zimbabwe, he now gets deliveries from the London Zoo. It is from his African background and experience in Zimbabwe that he has gotten the ideas for his works, and it must be realized when looking at â€Å"The Holy Virgin Mary† that it is basedShow MoreRelatedThe Holy Virgin Mary Essay2247 Words   |  9 PagesWhat a sensation was made about the Sensation exhibition in the Brooklyn Museum of Art. The focus of Mayor Giulianis outcry was the piece The Holy Virgin Mary by Chris Ofili. Funny, he didnt give attention to some of the other outrageous works including the pubescent female mannequins studded with erect penises, vaginas, and anuses, fused together in various postures of sexual coupling, or the portrait of a child molester and murder made from what appears like child hand prints or bisected animalsRead MorePublic Funding For Public Art1226 Words   |  5 Pagesquickly experience a full-blown controversy that could get out of hand. One of the most important strategies one can have is to build strong relationships. It makes it a lot easier to overcome these issues and to work together to resolve them. One well-known art case that caused much controversy due to its public funding was the portrait of The Holy Virgin Mary created by Chris Ofili, which was part of the display of Sensation. The famous portrait caused a lot of controversy because it was said to beRead More The Censorship Of Art Essay2753 Words   |  12 Pagesartists, Chris Ofili, portrayed a black Madonna adorned with elephant dung and pictures of women’s crotches from porn magazines. New York City Mayor, Rudolph Giuliani, said quot; The idea of having so-called works of art in which people are throwing elephant dung at a picture of the Virgin Mary is sick.quot; What is sick is that the government seems to have the idea that it can make decisions for the nation. Had the Mayor decided to go to the exhibit the mayor would have found out Ofili includesRead MoreRelationship Between Religion and Art in Medieval, Renaissance and Contemporary Times2657 Words   |  11 Pagesfamous and celebrated, and is visited by C hristians from every nation. In another part of the world, The Holy Virgin Mary by Chris Ofili resides in the Brooklyn Art Museum. It is a painting of Mary atop a pile of elephant feces, the Virgin herself made with the same substance, while surrounded by cutouts from pornographic magazines. The work has stirred much controversy but today still sits in the museum for the public (Saltz n.p.). As early as the Middle Ages, Mother Mary has been considered oneRead MoreEssay on Eliminating the National Endowment for the Arts 2355 Words   |  10 Pagesyellow liquid said to be his urine. These exhibits outraged the religious community as they read about them in newspapers, although these exhibits â€Å"had been publicly displayed for twelve years†¦ before they were put on trial† (Fritscher 1). The controversy Serrano and Mapplethorpe’s exhibits brought destroyed the NEA’s intentions artistic freedom and almost succeeded in destroying the NEA. An amendment in the National Foundation on the Arts and Humanities Act of 1965 was added to control artist work