Untitled #1 by David Pulphus
UPDATE: On April 14, 2017, a federal judge ruled that First Amendment protection doesn't apply, so the Architect of the Capitol is allowed to ban the painting from being displayed in the building. [Article]
>>> From the Associated Press (January 17, 2017):
A student’s painting that divided members of Congress for its depiction of Ferguson, Missouri, has been removed from its Capitol Hill display, this time perhaps permanently.
Several Republicans had complained about the painting, which shows a pig in a police uniform aiming a gun at a protester, and even took down the artwork temporarily. The lawmakers argued that the painting violated rules for a national student arts competition by showing subjects of contemporary political controversy or of a sensationalistic or gruesome nature.
In August 2014, a white police officer shot and killed Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, in Ferguson, setting off weeks of protests.
The architect of the Capitol informed lawmakers late Friday that the painting would be removed. On Tuesday, with House lawmakers back home for the week, the painting was gone.
The painting was among hundreds completed by high school students that are featured in a tunnel leading to the Capitol and had been hanging for months. But some conservative media outlets called for its removal and Republican lawmakers repeatedly took it down and returned it to Rep. William Lacy Clay’s office. Clay put it back up, saying its removal violated a constituent’s First Amendment rights to freedom of expression.
Related:
David Pulphus honored by U.S. Congress for protest painting
2016 winners of the Congressional Art Competition
The Memory Hole 2 is a one-person operation. Please donate so that I can keep going.