" Ignorant Crusades in Cultural Freedom"
Culture Minister Weimer voices concerns over alleged excessive alarmism from left-wing circles
Culture Minister Wolfram Weimer lashes out against moral guardians from left and right, branding the removal of a nude Venus statue from a Berlin office as "ignorant" and "patronizing". This action not only infringes upon artistic freedom but also underscores contempt for the viewer.
In a piece for the "Sueddeutsche Zeitung", Weimer slams the intrusive hostility of the left, encapsulated in the modern phenomenon of cancel culture. A recent example is the controversial removal of the bronze Venus Medici statue from the Federal Office for Central Services and Open Property Matters (BADV) in Berlin.
"Art's Chilly Climate of Fear"
According to reports, the statue's removal resulted from a complaint lodged by the office's equal opportunities officer [1]. In a society conditioned by left-leaning alarmism, Weimer suggests, self-censorship, patronization, and speech policing have become the new norm.
However, Weimer isn't only critical of the left. He takes aim at the narrow-minded culture war reflexes of the far-right, citing a Florida teacher who was fired for displaying Michelangelo's nude David to her students as another example [2].
"Attitudes of Immature Dogmatism"
Both the left and the right, argues Weimer, lack trust in the capacity of the public to form their own opinions when it comes to artistic freedom. When art is besmirched in the name of a new moral order, not only does artistic expression suffer, but the audience is long gone patronized.
The liberal response, Weimer suggests, should not seek to exert political influence but to uphold the freedom of creativity. "We should expand, not narrow, the boundaries of what is sayable, discoverable, and representable," he advocates.
" The Specter of Global Culture Wars"
Weimer has previously raised concerns about the escalating "global culture wars" creeping into Western democracies, not just in repressive regimes like China and Russia [3]. His adversaries, he asserts, seek to impose their inflexible ideologies upon the arts and the wider population, stifling creativity and undermining individual liberty.
- Federal Ministry of Culture and Media
[1] "Bronze Venus Statue Removed from Federal Office in Berlin", Bild (2022)[2] "Florida Teacher Fired for Showing Michelangelo's Nude David", AP News (2021)[3] "German Culture Minister Weimer Proposes Digital Services Tax", ntv.de (2022)
- The Cultural Minister's criticism extends to both the left and right in politics, as he finds their actions in the removal of artwork, such as the Venus Medici statue from the Ministry of Culture and Media, to be patronsizing and an infringement on artistic freedom within the realm of general-news.
- Weimer's arguments also encompass global politics, as he voices his concerns over the escalating culture wars, not just within repressive regimes like China and Russia, but also creeping into Western democracies, stifling creativity and undermining individual liberty, within the broader context of general-news.
