ONCE UPON a        TIME
                                                                                          ezine at l'atelier bonita
                                                     established since december 2002

Letters from Home : Marseille 2004                       by  Bonita Greetings, I hope this reply isn't too tardy. Indeed, censorship takes on many forms throughout the ages and, although what seemed to be "shocking" in the old days are now somewhat "acceptable" (hm, Vivienne Westwood at the Victoria and Albert...), depictions of us in our birthday suits continues to agitate those in power. I'm happy to see Goya's imfamous painting mentioned in your essay. It's amusing that so much attention was paid to Maya, Nude while few people gave a hoot or holler to Goya's brilliant suite of etchings, The Disaster of War. Our society has always been unsettled by sex (or the fantasy thereof) and unnaturally tolerant of violence. While television ratings shot up to the sky when Janet Jackson sang, noone gave a hoot or holler that thousands had died in Iraq over a period of 24 days in April, 2004. Then again, what is power but an avenue of livelihood created by fellow human beings to secure their own existence? From this angle, it is not difficult to understand why the church, politicians and corporations did their best to silent any acts of dissent. After all, a dictator is just as much a professional as a doctor, lawyer, stockbroker ... Like all professionals, the powerful compete by practicing, among other things, censorship. Why did John Ashcroft want an unclothed statue of Justice removed? Why did Giuliani deem Chris Ofili's painting of the Virgin Maryu a work of the devil? Saving one's own golden rice bowls, I suppose. Because in the end, the human body is nothing but good fertilizer, or just another case study, as in the film "Wit." Thank you again for a very thoughtful essay. I hope you will write more on the subject, such as detailing the acts of censorship in the arts in a specific period. "Comparing the works of Jenny Saville, Jeff Koons and John Currin" may be a good future project? Ta, Bonita ©2004 Ateleir Bonita _______________ A year after receiving her PhD in history, Bonita left New York City to work as a museum curator in Marseille, France. Her publications include J.F.M.: a catalogue raisonné of the graphic art of Jean-François Millet, En Route 1999, and the soon-to-be-published Empire of Our Prodigal Sons. Bonita, who is often seen in her Lazio football jersey, is the editor of Once Upon A Time magazine.

                                                   ONCE UPON      a TIME
                                                                                          ezine at l'atelier bonita
                                                     established since december 2002