A painting on display at Griffith University Art Gallery has copped some serious backlash from church groups and members of the public for its… interesting subject matter.
The painting, Holy Family, by Juan Davila depicts the Virgin Mary cradling a giant penis. Yes. A huge dick is in her hands. I cannot make this shit up.
Holy Family or, as I like to call it, Holy Shit That’s A Large Dique, is currently on display at Griffith University Art Gallery in Brisbane as part of their new The Abyss exhibition.
But it may not remain on display if local church groups and the Australian Christian Lobby have a say in the matter.
“As a publicly funded institution, Griffith has a moral obligation to the community they serve,” Australian Christian Lobby Queensland Director Wendy Francis said. “No one denies that we all have different views of what is acceptable or not in art. It can be explicit and challenging, but an image such as this, which humiliates and defiles one of the most famous women in history, does not belong in a public university.”
But according to the artist’s agent, this is a pretty normal concept for Davila to tackle.
“To try to remove a work from an exhibition is the tactics of a dictatorship rather than a democracy,” Agent Kalli Rolfe said. “Juan Davila is one of Australia’s most revered and prominent artists.”
The doodle is owned by a Brisbane couple, and I’d imagine it’s quite the conversation start when they have friends over for dinner. They’ve loaned it to the gallery to be a part of the exhibition, because honestly, everyone deserves a chance to look at this masterpiece.
Thankfully, Griffith University has no plans to take down the artwork and have released a statement on artistic freedom to the press.
“Art exhibited at the Museum can at times be, confronting and challenging, but always thought-provoking,” Professor Scott Harrison said. “Upon entry to the exhibition there are clear signs stating that the exhibition contains graphic content with nudity and depictions of violence.
Davila’s artwork has been displayed all across Australia and the world, including the MET in New York and Melbourne’s NGV.
Unfortunately, because I’d like to keep my job and not get the entire website banned from the internet, I’m not going to post the graphic version. But if you want to see the schlong in all of it’s artistic glory, you can definitely find it online.
