Assignment Tutor

Often works of art are looked upon as indicators of the cultural climate of the era in which they were created. In our society, much has been made recently of photographs of famous nude paintings being removed from Facebook and personal photos of artwork resulting in Instagram accounts being closed down. If art can be interpreted many ways by many different people, then is it an artist’s right to free speech to express themselves or should limits be placed on images or works that are offensive or inappropriate?

Objective: 

Discuss your views on art censorship and what constitutes what acceptable art is.

Instructions:

Step 1. By Wednesday, write a detailed post explaining whether or not you think works of art should be censored. Share your thoughts or experiences to generate an interesting discussion with your classmates. Then, answer at least two of the following questions:

• If art should be censored, how do we achieve agreement upon which art is ok and which isn’t?
• Who should be in charge of making those decisions?
• What if a work of art degrades or insults a person’s race, religious beliefs, or sexual orientation?
• Are violent images in art acceptable if they are making a social comment, or should graphic and disturbing images never be part of artistic work? Explain why or why not and provide examples to support your opinions.
• Cite any sources that you reference ideas or images from.