Drafts of Nelson Garrido´s work censored by Flickr

28 sept 2010
1 Min. de lectura

The Autumn Cover of Fuel Magazine features the work of Nelson Garrido, one of the most important Venezuelan contemporary photographers, whose drafts for his most recent body of work Como enseñarle arte a una liebre muerta (Homenaje a Joseph Beuys) – How to teach art to a dead hare (tribute to Joseph Beuys) were erased from Flickr.

It is amazing the way censorship works. Sometimes and under certain circumstances a boop, a cock or a nipple become the center of discussion and moral debate for institutions, media and the government. Our own body becomes a bizarre image when presented naked, aroused or enjoying sexual pleasure. But censorship does not work that fast and intensely when images of war, exploitation, brutality, cruelty or pain are featured to scare audiences or keep them ¨educated¨.

Art and popular culture both produce images we consume and stay in our minds, different purposes and narratives make a huge difference between a contemporary work of art and a work of commercial photography, both can feature nipples, boops, cocks or blood, but the text underneath and who they serve, make the big difference.

Next censorship could go to hate speech, racism, sexism, gender violence, corporate greed, religious fanaticism, state terrorism or the morning news, maybe then the joy of our own bodies will become a liberating and growing experience for all.