Parade as a Protest Artform: Photographs of Doo Dah 1990 presents a small collection of printed images originally recorded by artist Carolyn P. Speranza on Kodachrome slide film. These photographs document that year's Anti-Censorship Demonstration led by the "Censor-Ship" (a metal, vehicle-sized, mobile sculpture) and featuring the "See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil" Drill Team, the "Censorship Banned" Band, the "I Don't Like It, You Can't Look at It" Porno-Police, and other groups.
This coalition of artists, arts professionals and art-lovers organized to protest the censorship-driven attack—led by U.S. Senator Jesse Helms—on National Endowment for the Arts funding for artists whose work provocatively explored religion, sexual and racial identity, queer culture, and the AIDS crisis. The Anti-Censorship Demonstration played a leading role in Columbus' Doo-Dah parade that year and was distinct in its expression of artistic activism compared with protests on the same topic in other cities around the country. Photographs in Parade as a Protest Artform show 1990 protesters creatively using facsimiles of Michelangelo's David and the Venus De Milo sculpture, connecting the exhibit to current debates denouncing (and censuring) artistic expression as pornography.
In addition to the in-person exhibit of photographs at the Short North Tavern, this project includes a concerted virtual effort to identify individuals in the 1990 images. The grassroots organizers were affiliated with BalletMet, Columbus Museum of Art, Wexner Center for the Arts, Players Theatre, Citizens for a Better Skyline, Used Kids Records, Columbus Alive, Heritage Village, Ohio Arts Council, Greater Columbus Arts Council, Team Volatile, Stuart Pimsler Dance Theater Company, Dialogue Magazine, and The Ohio State University Art Department, including students. Long-time fans of Doo-Dah and employees/members/board members from these organizations are invited to visit @auguryart on Instagram to assist in identifying individuals in each photograph. The QR Code in the bottom right corner of the poster can also be used.
Parade as a Protest Artform: Photographs of Doo Dah 1990 is at the Short North Tavern, 674 N. High Street, Columbus, OH 4321; July 1 – August 4, 2023; Mon - Fri, 3:00PM - 2:30AM and SAT - SUN, 12:30PM - 2:30AM.
Contact: carolyn[at]speranza[dot]net
