Trump's Culture War Targets America's Museums

[Merrill]

That seems to be the aim. Heaven forbid that art should make a statement that Trump doesn't like.

let me go into the archive and get one of many examples where Democratic politicians removed paintings from the walls of museums because they saw things they didn't like. Here is a good one:

"1988 private student exhibition in the Art Institute, angry African-American aldermen, including Ald. Allan Streeter, Ald. Bobby Rush and Ald. Dorothy Tillman, arrived with Chicago Police Department officers and confiscated the painting"

Mirth & Girth - Wikipedia

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and then we have more current examples of the left demanding that paintings of past presidents and political figures be removed from museums, and statues of Jefferson and Washington be pulled down

https://govtrackinsider.com/amid-calls-to-take-washington-or-jefferson-off-mount-rushmore-protection-act-would-ban-any-faces-26619b141945

and maybe we can discuss how those enlightened nations of the USSR or Communist China handle art --such as paradise of free expression in those places!

 

[Aryeh Jay]

The only museums that deserves federal money are the Creationism museum and the Ark Encounter. Everything else is just a hodgepodge of anti biblical science and snooty European thought.

 

[Bradskii]

"this isn't about art, aesthetics, or even culture--it is about selecting historical artifacts, throwing them together, and then making political and ideological pronouncements."

The executive order said that 'Museums in our Nation's capital should be places where individuals go to learn -- not to be subjected to ideological indoctrination or divisive narratives'

So what ideological narritive was any one of those sculptures proposing? And by whom? I'm sure there'd be a mix (and I'm equally sure that you aren't aware of who did what and why), so why can't we examine them and compare them over different generations and different societies? Who on earth is Trump to decide what we can and cannot do in regards to art? Is Banksy to be banned?

 

[Bradskii]

let me go into the archive and get one of many examples where...

Not the slightest bit interested. I'm talking about what the executive order said and how you responded.

 

[Merrill]

The executive order said that 'Museums in our Nation's capital should be places where individuals go to learn -- not to be subjected to ideological indoctrination or divisive narratives'

So what ideological narritive was any one of those sculptures proposing? And by whom? I'm sure there'd be a mix (and I'm equally sure that you aren't aware of who did what and why), so why can't we examine them and compare them over different generations and different societies? Who on earth is Trump to decide what we can and cannot do in regards to art? Is Banksy to be banned?

The people who constructed the exhibit were driving an ideological narrative, not the artists. That was literally my point above

and I clearly said that I was suspicious in regards to Trump's actions here --and pretty much don't support his efforts.

because it allows left-wing activists to paint themselves as victims and then triple-down

 

[Merrill]

Not the slightest bit interested. I'm talking about what the executive order said and how you responded.

so we aren't arguing on principle here

just cynical political advantage and expedience

in other words, if Biden ordered a museum to stop exhibiting a "problematic" collection, there would be crickets from everyone in this chat thread (just as the left is perfectly cool with ripping down statues and paintings of people they don't like)

so let's expect Trump to act according to sound principles when we don't have any. ok

 

[Nithavela]

You literally complained about ideology and politics in art. Do you want a museum that just exhibits pretty scenes painted with oils on a canvas? Do you want sculptures to be just wood or marble and to be as lifelike as possible? Art is soaked in politics. From Picasso to Banksy. Is it to be banned?

What Philistine madness is this? And name some of the sculptors and what their work was meant to represent to back up your complaints.

Degenerate art - Wikipedia

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[Nithavela]

I don't see why you are complaining. As long as they don't tear down the statues of confederate generals, it's all good.

 

[essentialsaltes]

so we aren't arguing on principle here

Sure we are. Happy to tell you the city aldermen were wrong to do that. Sorry if you've been waiting 37 years for me to say that.

 

[iluvatar5150]

No, that is not what I said. Let's look at what I wrote:

"this isn't about art, aesthetics, or even culture--it is about selecting historical artifacts, throwing them together, and then making political and ideological pronouncements."

that means art exhibits should not be stripped of their aesthetic, cultural, or historical aspects

The exhibit is literally about the cultural and historical aspects of the works within it.

 

[Merrill]

I don't see why you are complaining. As long as they don't tear down the statues of confederate generals, it's all good.

and when did I say that exactly?

 

[Akita Suggagaki]

Also, "improper partisan ideology" is a chilling phrase. That could be literally anything the administration doesn't like. And I don't think anyone really has serious doubts about what that "ideology" is composed of or which why it leans politically.

From OP: "Museums in our Nation's capital should be places where individuals go to learn -- not to be subjected to ideological indoctrination or divisive narratives that distort our shared history."


We have entered an epoch where science and any critical thought can be labelled "improper partisan ideology" and be curtailed, discouraged and silenced in many ways. I never thought I would see these days. Perhaps I have been too naïve all along.

 

[durangodawood]

in this case it is the Marxists who say "look at these sculptures, they show how victimized the artists were by inherently racist and genocidal white people, and the class oppression endemic in the country"!

Does it really say that? Not in the link you provided.

What it does say is this:

The Shape of Power: Stories of Race and American Sculpture examines the role of sculpture in understanding and constructing the concept of race in the United States. The exhibition brings together 82 sculptures created between 1792 and 2023 and ranging in size from palm-sized coins to monumental statues created from diverse media such as bronze, marble, shoes, paper, and hair. Made by 70 different artists, these sculptures are displayed to allow for juxtapositions of historical and contemporary works that invite dialogue and reflection on notions of power and identity. American sculpture in its many forms also has served as an expression of resistance, liberation, and a vital means for reclaiming identity.

We've just got to take your word that the thing is about inherently genocidal white people?

 

[Nithavela]

and when did I say that exactly?

I try not to read your posts if possible, so I wouldn't know if you said that. I was replying to the OP in general.

 

[FireDragon76]

The order includes additional provisions seeking to reinstate public monuments, memorials and statues that were "removed or changed to perpetuate a false reconstruction of American history, inappropriately minimize the value of certain historical events or figures, or include any other improper partisan ideology"

Welcome back, Confederate generals. Your value to this great nation (or at least the CSA) has been restored.

I thought we were over with honoring losers...

 

[Pommer]

The Administration is targeting the Smithsonian museums.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday directing Vice President JD Vance to eliminate "divisive race-centered ideology" from Smithsonian museums, educational and research centers, and the National Zoo.

"Once widely respected as a symbol of American excellence and a global icon of cultural achievement, the Smithsonian Institution has, in recent years, come under the influence of a divisive, race-centered ideology. This shift has promoted narratives that portray American and Western values as inherently harmful and oppressive." It goes on to say: "Museums in our Nation's capital should be places where individuals go to learn -- not to be subjected to ideological indoctrination or divisive narratives that distort our shared history."

https://www.npr.org/2025/03/27/nx-s1-5342914/smithsonian-president-trump-executive-order

Fred Willard did it betterer.

 

[Pommer]

The order includes additional provisions seeking to reinstate public monuments, memorials and statues that were "removed or changed to perpetuate a false reconstruction of American history, inappropriately minimize the value of certain historical events or figures, or include any other improper partisan ideology"

Welcome back, Confederate generals. Your value to this great nation (or at least the CSA) has been restored.

Nathan Bedford Forrest Month is right around the corner!

 

[Pommer]

...we will see a monument to the J6'ers?

Si, but in the Capitol Rotunda

 

[Aryeh Jay]

Nathan Bedford Forrest Month is right around the corner!

He rode right in front of where the house I would live in would later be built in Alabama. 1863 Forrest / Straight raid. Day Gap road.

 

[Pommer]

and Anti-German and Communist.

This EO labels things "anti-American ideology" and you have labelled it Marxist.

As dictator, Hitler gave his personal taste in art the force of law to a degree never before seen.

And that's why "Cats" may be coming to the Kennedy Center.

…and The Producers, mayhaps?