It's not hard to upset close-minded people -- especially when those people are religious nuts. Any attempt to try and make them think about their beliefs will be met with outrage, and very possibly criminal actions. That's what has happened at the University of Dallas.
The University of Dallas was exhibiting the artwork of students from Murray State University in Kentucky. Murray State had previously exhibited the artwork of University of Dallas students. But one piece of art from Murray State created a furor on the Dallas campus.
Joanna Gianulis had done a print depicting the Virgin Mary as a stripper. She said she didn't mean to offend anyone and didn't even know the University was a Catholic school. She said she was trying to question perceptions of saints and sinners.
Gianulis said, "How do we know that an exotic dancer is sinful? What if she has the best intentions and strives only to help those in need? Many single mothers are in this position and that is another reason why I chose to reference the Virgin Mary, because she was another woman who was in a tough position and probably received much criticism because of it."
I must applaud the faculty and administration on the Dallas campus for trying to maintain an atmosphere of academic freedom and allowing the exhibit to be displayed without censoring it.
But some of the students were much more close-minded. Instead of provoking thought, the work outraged them. And at least one student crossed the line into criminal behavior (and sin).
The exhibit began on February 8th, and it was discovered on February 14th that the print had been stolen. It has not been recovered. Once again, a religious nut has stepped forward to embarrass the state of Texas.
Ms. Gianulis did not have a picture of the print, but this is how she describes it:
"The work is a black and white woodcut relief print depicting a scantily clad stripper wearing a veil and holding a rosary. Other details in the work are scrolls saying 'Sinner or Saint?' in Spanish and referencing the Virgin [of] Guadalupe, and also a snake, some white lilies, a pair of scales, and also a small image of a bar of soap opposite a bottle marked 'xxx.' "
