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Oracle of DelphiPhotography: Andres Serrano - Piss Christ (1987)
June 28th 2006 01:59
Piss Christ is a controversial photograph by American photographer Andres Serrano. It depicts a small plastic crucifix supporting the body of Jesus Christ submerged in a glass of the artist's urine. Some have suggested that the glass may also contain the artist's blood. The piece was a winner of the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art's "Awards in the Visual Arts" competition, which is sponsored in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, a United States Government agency that offers support and funding for artistic projects.
The piece caused a scandal when it was exhibited in 1989, with detractors accusing Serrano of blasphemy and others raising this as a major issue of artistic freedom. On the floor of the United States Senate, Senators Al D'Amato and Jesse Helms expressed outrage that the piece was supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, since it is a federal taxpayer-financed institution.
Serrano contends that his work Piss Chris would not have caused as much controversy if it weren't for the title. He claims that he meant no disrespect. However, he titled the piece in the same manner that he titled all of the works of the period: a description of the object seen as well as the liquid it was submerged in.
Interestingly, in 1997, Dr Timothy Potts, at the time the Director National Gallery of Victoria, chose to close an exhibition of Andres Serrano's work as a result of public pressure. Rightly, in my opinion, Andres Serrano protested and condemned all who supported Dr Potts. He attacked the Victorian Premier, Jeff Kennett by saying:
"Its interesting for Kenneth to categorise my work as 'junk' in doing so he's also saying the National Gallery of Victoria supports garbage,as far as I'm coserned Dr Potts has no future and anyone who agrees with him is a fool ".
The piece caused a scandal when it was exhibited in 1989, with detractors accusing Serrano of blasphemy and others raising this as a major issue of artistic freedom. On the floor of the United States Senate, Senators Al D'Amato and Jesse Helms expressed outrage that the piece was supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, since it is a federal taxpayer-financed institution.
Andres Serrano, Piss Christ, 1987 (color photograph, Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago)
Serrano contends that his work Piss Chris would not have caused as much controversy if it weren't for the title. He claims that he meant no disrespect. However, he titled the piece in the same manner that he titled all of the works of the period: a description of the object seen as well as the liquid it was submerged in.
Interestingly, in 1997, Dr Timothy Potts, at the time the Director National Gallery of Victoria, chose to close an exhibition of Andres Serrano's work as a result of public pressure. Rightly, in my opinion, Andres Serrano protested and condemned all who supported Dr Potts. He attacked the Victorian Premier, Jeff Kennett by saying:
"Its interesting for Kenneth to categorise my work as 'junk' in doing so he's also saying the National Gallery of Victoria supports garbage,as far as I'm coserned Dr Potts has no future and anyone who agrees with him is a fool ".
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