"> Name: Shawn Dell Joyce, "She Nourishes," Newburgh, New York

Date: 1995 - present

Location: North America

SubjectNudity

MediumPainting ,Public art


Artist: Shawn Dell Joyce

Confronting Bodies: Stewart Airport Administrators

Date of Action: February 2002

Specific Location: Newburgh, New York

Description of Artwork: Joyce's painting, "She Nourishes," shows a woman breast-feeding. The woman's breast is partially covered by the child's mouth. It is part of a larger piece with three other panels: one showing a mountainous horizon, another with children praying and one with two people in a boat.



Description of Incident: Joyce's piece was part of an exhibit in Stewart International Airport in Newburgh, New York. Officials removed the painting after recieving 15 complaints in two days. A spokesperson for the airport, Kiran Jain, stated, "we reacted to this particular thing in the same way we would if someone told us the door knob in the men's room was broken."



Results of Incident: Following the painting's removal 40 stroller-wheeling mothers protested outside the airport terminal. The protest recieved mixed reviews from passersby. Some showed support while others averted their eyes.



Source: The New York Times, 2/28/2002

Submitted By: NCAC


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