I found myself surprisingly moved by Alma Lopez’s “Silencing Our Lady”. As a female Chicana artist, Lopez faces incredible obstacles to being recognized as an artist. The criticism of her work Our Lady, and the demands of those attempting to censor this work, truly exposes the inherently patriarchal nature of the art world. Her response to attempted censorship further illustrates the dangers of censorship in the art world.
Lopez was told again and again by protesters that she did not have the right to interpret this specific cultural icon in the way she is portrayed in Lopez’s print. I would like to ask: who gave these people the right to declare who can or cannot interpret something through art?
The fact that the main organizers of this protest were male is indeed significant. Because of their status as activists and religious leaders, these men (Jose Villegas, Deacon Anthony Trujillo, and New Mexico Archbishop Michael J. Sheehan) they believe they have the right to censor Lopez’s art. Their notion is patriarchal: they, as male leaders, know better than any woman.
If these men and their followers had succeeded, the installation would have been removed from the exhibit, effectively censoring the print. But, as Lopez questions, how would this affect the people who found inspiration and meaning in her work? What does it mean if people in positions of power are able to silence the expression of marginalized individuals?
For myself, I was glad to learn that Lopez was not censored and that the exhibit continued as planned.