Censorship Ends Weisman Museum Show
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| Small detail of Con Nuestros Manos Construimos Deidades (With Our Hands We Build Deities) by AMBOS, 2023. Photo by Henry Adams |
Matt Stromberg, writing in Hyperallergic, reports that Pepperdine University's Weisman Museum has closed a show six months early after censoring at least two politically charged works. In one case, an embroidered patch reading "SAVE THE CHILDREN / ABOLISH ICE" was turned so that the words were not visible to viewers. The patch was part of an assemblage by the collective Art Made Between Opposite Sides (AMBOS). A video by Elana Mann, Call to Arms 2015–2025, was turned off. Other artists in the show withdrew in protest, apparently forcing the early closure.
The exhibition, "Hold My Hand in Yours," was a group show on the theme of the hand "as a symbolic image, nodding to its role as an artistic tool par excellence." As of today, the website does not mention the closure.
Despite its art museum's Jewish namesake, Pepperdine University is a private Christian school affiliated with the Churches of Christ.
UPDATE: See Henry Adams' report in the Pepperdine University Graphic for the detailed backstory.
Comments
> Jewish namesake
Makes me think of the AMPAS museum originally and intentionally downplaying the role of major Jews in the movie industry.
Now in 2025, is being pro-Palestine or anti-Palestine, or pro-Israel or anti-Israel a good thing or bad thing?
As for "Save the Children," certain gangs in South America have been involved in the smuggling of children. Good thing or bad thing?