Means and Methods

As the examples on this site illustrate, people have sometimes responded negatively to works of art, using means ranging from bad reviews to outright attacks. In some cases this results in alteration of a work of art, while in others the attack is focused on limiting access to or distribution of the work.

The list below is a selection of methods that affect how artwork reaches the public, including many discussed in the Culture Shock Web site and in the films:

1. banning particular books from school libraries and curricula

2. calling for the removal of certain paintings from public museums

3. campaigning to have particular types of music banned from public performances

4. rioting in protest of ballet performances

5. arresting the publishers of certain books

6. withdrawing films from public release

7. canceling funding for proposed exhibitions or artists

8. dismantling public murals

9. buying all the copies of certain books and shredding them

10. holding Congressional hearings on song lyrics

11. forcing artists to emigrate

12. burning books

13. expurgating selected passages from plays

14. bleeping words from broadcasts

15. placing fig leaves over the genital area of nude statues

16. demanding changes in public monuments

17. electronically altering images

18. defacing paintings

19. changing the costumes of performers to hide the body

20. calling for the death of particular authors

21. destroying certain works of art and all copies

22. boycotting all films by certain production companies

23. imprisoning an artist

24. killing an artist