Censorship row brewing as locals complain of art exhibition overstepping 'morality and decency'
The point was raised at a meeting of Waterford Council.
A recent art exhibition has stirred up a debate about censorship and the role of public officials at Waterford Council.
The controversy purportedly stems from a recent art exhibition that prompted a number of people to contact their local representative to complain.
At a recent meeting, Councillor Eamon Quinlan spoke about being contacted by members of the public about the exhibition. He expressed discomfort at the implication that he had any role to play in what an art space presents.
He said: "I have served on numerous boards and continue to do so on several now.
"These are appointments from the local Council and a lot of arts groups, theatres, galleries etc request a member of the Council on their board in order to ensure the needs of the organisations are well-known within the local authority."
Cllr Quinlan continued: "I was surprised to say the least when I was put under pressure from callers to shut down an artist's exhibition in Waterford City. They claimed that the exhibit was overstepping in terms of morality and decency. I declined, as I do not see my role on arts boards to be supervising the artistic content and in my opinion, practicing censorship.
"It's my job to make sure the finances are stable, governance is adhered to and, basically, keep the lights on.
He went on: "I have always deferred to the judgement of the person invested in the organisation with the role of artistic director. I suppose the worry I have is that while I said no, the door is open potentially for politicians to be put under pressure by members of the public, even in small numbers, who can threaten to unseat you if you don’t bow to their wishes.
"I feel such influence on our local arts community should be resisted and politicians should not be restraining artists' visions."
On the topic of censorship, he said: "I am concerned that councillors have too much free rein here. What would have happened if another councillor in that position said yes, and did move to shut down the exhibition?"
After the meeting, other councillors confirmed that they had also received similar calls about the exhibit and pressure to shut down "certain artist's exhibitions".
Cllr Quinlan said: "I am calling on Waterford City and County Council to produce guidelines for councillors to ensure they know what their responsibilities and how to act and, most importantly, their obligations to the organisation they are serving on and not compromise said organisation due to political pressure.
"Without this type of steel in the spine of some political representatives, I would be concerned, especially as those seeking to subdue the local arts community are far more organised in terms of their pressure campaign than we had initially thought."
Chief Executive Sean McKeown noted that the issue could later prove a "liability" for Council.
A Waterford-based art gallery was reached for a quote on the matter of censorship but declined to comment on the record.
