Defend Me, Giovanni, Protect My Honor An Examination of How the History of Visual Artists, Society, Morality and the Law Converge

Abstract

Visual art advocates, administrators and artists need to know what an artistâs obligation to society is in order to effectively interpret the current laws built into our legal framework for visual art protection. Understanding the history of the artist, moral rights, the Visual Artists Rights Act and the Obscenity Clause attached to our First Amendment is the first step in assisting visual artists and organizations in their mission to communicate with fellow human beings and summon social progress. Without a complete history of where these laws came from and who dictates what an artist legally can or can not do, artists are doomed to remain marginalized, painting and sculpting in a vacuum which, ultimately, could be the end of art. When morality, government agencies and elected officials integrate to control the content and what kinds of art that are protected by American laws, it becomes pertinent for artists and those who seek to support the arts in America to know what types of restrictions they are up against. Everyone in America who makes it a daily mission to create art or protect the rights of artists need to take a critical look at the current legislation that is in place for artists and their finished pieces. Analyizing Americaâs visual art-centric laws needs to become an essential part of the vocabulary of visual artists and organizations whose missions are to connect with communities and work towards social reform. This thesis is an attempt at a comprehensive history of where these laws came from and what can and should be improved upon, all while informing artists of their basic rights in order for them to continue to create relevant and stimulating works of art. Only when artists are wide awake to the society in which they seek to record, will this type of political and societal enlightenment merge with the artistâs aesthetic and training. When the two worlds meet, artists everywhere can continue their task of changing the world for the better.%%%%M.S., Arts Administration – Drexel University, 2010