tl19900913_000 "Vol. 86 No. 1 ""Required Reading"" September 13, 1990 The TOWeilight Published weekly by the students of Towson State University, Towson MD 21204 The careening debate about National Endowment for the Arts funding of art works deemed pornographic has made very hot issues of freedom of speech and expression, creative control, pornography, and censorship. The current BALThouse show in Baltimore features pieces of art that have been withdrawn from exhibits nationwide because of the personal tastes of a handful of individuals in positions of power. On page 21, a photo from the exhibit is displayed. What is offensive, and who should decide? Prohibited art on exhibit downtown By Joab Jackson Staff Writer "". .After all, if you believe that no one was ever corrupted by a book, you have also to believe that no one was ever improved by a book (or a play or a movie)""-Irving Kristol to restrict our freedoms and we will fight even harder to preserve them""- Jane's Addiction I choose these words carefully. We live in dangerous times. A person can easily be corrupted by words on paper, or noise on plastic, or paint on canvas. BAUhouse, a coffehouse-gallery-live music showcase on 1713 N. Charles Street, is currently exhibiting a collection of artworks deemed too offensive or corrupt for general consumption. Each of these works has been previously removed from various public venues, either from galleries, public buildings, or business offices all over the mid-Atlantic region. Frankly, I came to the opening (W8) expecting the erotic and vulgar. I found a bit of both, none too extreme, however. Mostly, though, what I saw was the ludicrous; absurdity in how tame some of the censored works actually were, whidi was the point of the exhibit The first work shown is Richard Kirstel's Tas De Deux,"" a series of photos intended to be shown at Towson State's Van Bokkelen Hall, back in 1970. The show was cancelled due to ""fears about the possible political repercussions' from the University administration. The photos depict both lesbian and heterosexual couples in various stages of lovemaking. The elegant use of darkness and the emphasis of human body lines present as much sensuality as the actual nudity. One could see how Tas De Deux"" might offend the prudent, but it is hard to determine why other paintings were censored (well, not censored per se, most works were simply 'removed""). Joe Shannon's figurative painting, ""Dance Life,* was originally pulled from the Fairfax County Courthouse. Was it pulled because a man in the background is giving the viewer the finger, or because the central character, a professional man in a business suit, see CENSORED, p.21 (444e: �Mass Communications professor O'Connor dies at 72. Page 2. �Censored art at the �Football loses opener. BAUlzouse. Page 21. Page 6. "
