Chicago, Desire No Shackles

Even in the Age of Information, it would seem that not all information is created equal. We have seen this in the closing of a successful 3-year-old production of Mozart's opera 'Idomeneo', because as Berlin police said, it posed 'incalculable risk' of inciting Islamic fundamentalists to violence. These and other acts of cultural and artistic intimidation are a stark reminder that censorship throbs with power while the lifeblood of art is wrung dry.

Last year, outrage from Muslim students led Harper College, located just outside Chicago, to remove an exhibition of works by Amir Normandi depicting the oppression women suffer in many Islamic countries. Partly in response, Normandi, an Iranian-born Muslim, has curated a new exhibition of works by local and international artists entitled, 'Desire No Shackles, / 'Imagine No Borders', to examine oppression, and the notion of borders in Islam and other contexts.

Featured artists: Amir Normandi, Maryam Hashemi, Marcia Middleton Kaplan, Tim Arroyo, Diane Carriere, Rosy Torres.


Please help us strike a blow to censorship and promote freedom of expression and artistic integrity by posting this event on your blog.

For more info on the events and on the artists, see 'Desire No Shackles / 'Imagine No Borders'

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