Politics and Society - Prudery banns Art in the Web

FACEBOOK the biggest social media plattform has done it again. Never learned! Their prudery algorythms banned again human cultural heritages because of NUDITY ... if it wern´t that serious, it could be hilarious. Art work of Rubens in Les Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique (MRBAB), posted on the Toerisme Vlaanderen FACEBOOK site was banned because of nudity. Hilarious, as FACEBOOK got a bloody nose for the same in 2017, including being heartly ridiculed. A morality standard that suits evangical flatearthers and other victorian double moralists.

by Earl of Cruise
While posting this article in various groups ... all of a sudden FACEBOOK blocked me for further postings in groups where I am a member ... If this is not censorship, then what else it is? 

FACEBOOK’s overzealous censoring software (algorhythm) has brought the social media giant into controversy with increasing frequency, even as it faces intense criticism on another front for doing too little to prevent the spread of "fake news" and hate speech.
And FACEBOOK the data octopus can´t seperate between private, official or politicians sites on the platform? But censorship hites everyone, not only the commoner.

The Birth of Venus (Nascita di Venere [ˈnaʃʃita di ˈvɛːnere]) painting by Sandro Botticelli probably made in the mid 1480s. Until 1919 the painting kept in the Galleria dell'Accademia, another government museum in Florence - © Galleria dell’Accademia

Prudery, for what ever the reason is for, political or religious, is for 511 million European an offense. We are in Europe quite liberal after centuries with that - Prudery. When in 19th century the art salons depicted nudes it was quite a shock wave in the societies, as it was back in the Renaissance, when artists depicted by classic style inspired nude sculptures and statues, as Micheangelo´s David or his nudes in the Sixteena. Donatello's David, with a hint of clothing in 1440, on to Verrocchio's version, a complete nude David in the perfect resting pose - Verrochio´s knowledge of anatomie was more than interest. Then we got too Botticelli´s Birth of Venus and other fantastic paintings and murals. Later it was not only for the praize of the human being, but to see nudes,m male and female, "covered" as mythical scenes from antique ages ... and the church was only fuming, not burning. Paintings by Rubens and other famous Baroque and later artists.

David of Michelangelo, a manifestation for the individual freedom of any human, this statue is since 1873 in the Galleria dell’Accademia in Firenze. It has a hight of 5,17 meter and is estimated of near to 6 tons. The statue on the  Piazza della Signoria is a copy, because of eviromental influences, as airpollution - © Galleria dell’Accademia

The fresco "Last Judgement" of Michelangelo in the Cappella Sistina - Source: Wikipedia

The Vatican officials ordered a panty painter to cover Michelangelo´s nudes some years after the work of, genius, Michelangelo was finished. Today we have prudery offensive by some backworld standards, as we European see and feel it, that is again banning nudity. GOOGLE tried it in his google art pages black outs on breast, tits and butts ans especially penisses, or was blurring the sight. It is for all to see in the museums.

Hey we fought for our freedom, for democracy and the way we live today for centuries. The last one after poisoned German people caused by this Austrian Wallpainter - happily, no luckily, freed from by the Allies. This libration we don´t want to be taken away by none. Especially not FACEBOOK´s imposing prissy US American standards or prudery, which FACEBOOK imposes on the rest of the world.
This prudery is causing some right winged populistic assholes to claim it comes from moslem people, which want to impose their culture on Europe. It comes handy for these Alt-Rights, as the educationally disadvantaged don´t get it, as they can´t see the real origin - US America.

When Mike Zuckerberg answered that FACEBOOK won´t remove HOLOCAUST denouncing posts, as some people, he said, are unknown about the HOLOCAUST, and therefore create the more hate speech against people of Jewish belief, which is not in his resposability, he did not only show unknowingness or ignorance but also a masive amount of stupidity. Especially after he and FACEBOOK had to realize the manipulations by CAMBRIDGE ANALYTICA.
When posts popped up about the amount of not knowing about, the researches had been questioned, again the amount of industrialized death and how can one to two thousand questioned people can be representative - it must have been a schock for those. But we in Germany, even if subliminal knowing back then what happened to Jews, we had a schock and could not believe that it had been 6,5 million plus and some millions more (polical prisoners, Sinti, Roma, and so many others) that had been killed "industrial" by Nazi Germany.

By the way : denouncing the HOLCAUST in Germany is a criminal action - and our law is strict! We name it in Germany : VOLKSVERHETZUNG (incitement of mass hatred). Something the former Allies had forgotten to implement in their laws - which would have been a good thing, especially in a certain country where the freedom of speech is a major paragraph in its constitution. And FACEBOOK is facing for not removing a lawsuit here in Germany. Even if they are posted in USA. But they can be read here, and can cause or fuel anti semitism.
This was in 2018, for FACEBOOK a year of  embarrassments as for CAMBRIDGE ANALYTICS and realizing that its plattform has been misused to influence elections in United kingdom and USA.

Nudity despite is hurting noone - except perhaps those that better never show up unclothed. We see them running around in summer temperatures clothed for their dreamed figure, but not their real one. That is in the opposite a disgusting stroke for the eyes - much more offending.
Some time ago, 2017, I wrote in an article about the ban of the butt of the Hercules statue in Kassel - A landmark and icon, a tourist attration in the city of the DOCUMENTA (Destinations - Sicily arts and history a cruise onboard ANDREA). It is and was hilarious. A prude stupidity of FACEBOOK and its US American prudery algorhythms ... The prudeness in US America is put over worldwide. Okay FACEBOOK is allowing China to block for the regning party critical posts ... so FACEBOOK should do such with US citizen or whom the web giant is thinking it may offend them.
I more and more get the impression that US women will get pregnant unwillingly if they see a butt, even from a statue, or a male bellybutton.
But these unworldly hypocritic moral standards fit into those news where so called "religious" motivated apprentices (they call themselves politicians) want to ban sexual education in schools, especially primary schools. But if you don´t teach the kids age apropriate about sexuality they are game for sexual predators, and evangical gender norms that ban everybodies individual development into a healthy member of society.

Herkules a landmark statue and world heritage in Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe in Kassel - © "GrimmHeimat NordHessen"

The Herkules in Kassel Wilhelmshöhe, Kassel, the city where each 20 years the world wide most important art show, the DOCUMENTA, is held, was posted by the regional tourist office "GrimmHeimat NordHessen" at FACEBOOK and banned by, including the tourist offices FACEBOOK site. This is the "norm" at 19th century victorian prude FACEBOOK, when some is posting something inapropriate for FACEBOOK´s victorian moral standards. FACEBOOK needs to reconfigure its prudery algorhythm.

Herkules left posted by "GrimmHeimat NordHessen" on its FACEBOOK site, and the reaction when reposting - © "GrimmHeimat NordHessen"

FACEBOOK regreted after protests the farce around the naked back of Kassel's Hercules statue. The company apologized to the advertisers from Hessen and solved the problem, reported an agency that supports the social network in its press work in German-speaking countries. The tourism advertisers of "GrimmHeimat NordHessen" had put a swimming trunk on the monument, which belongs to the World Cultural Heritage, for a photo series with an image editing program, after FACEBOOK had blocked a back view of the statue as "offensive content".

The Water Features - Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe

The animated film explains the Water Features of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe in Kassel - drawn and spoken by Felix Kramer, Student at the Art College Kassel. Coming soon: an additional animated film about the construction work at the Cascades - Source: Youtube © "GrimmHeimat NordHessen"

This year, 2017, threw another highlight on FACEBOOK victorian evangical prudeness standards. It was another icon of art and world heritage : the nude statue of Neptun in Bologna.
FACEBOOK again had to apologise after conceding it “incorrectly” banned a photograph of the naked sea god Neptune and sought to have an Italian art historian remove it from her web page. The 16th century Renaissance statue, which stands in Piazza del Nettuno in Bologna, was chosen by local writer Elisa Barbari to illustrate her Facebook page entitled, “Stories, curiosities and views of Bologna”.

 

Neptun, a Renaissance statue, which stands in Piazza del Nettuno in Bologna - © Evening Standard

Local writer Elisa Barbari had chosen the statue, which shows Neptune naked and holding a trident, to illustrate her Facebook page “Stories, curiosities and views of Bologna.” But the Nettuno picture fell foul of the social media giant’s privacy and prudery algorhythm based policies, the Daily Telegraph reported.
Before the climbdown, Signiora Barbari had said she was shocked by Facebook’s censorship of the photograph of the famous statue which was created by Flemish sculptor Jean de Boulogne in the 1560s.
In a statement, Facebook told the artist: "The use of the image was not approved because it violates Facebook’s guidelines on advertising. It presents an image with content that is explicitly sexual and which shows to an excessive degree the body, concentrating unnecessarily on body parts. The use of images or video of nude bodies or plunging necklines is not allowed, even if the use is for artistic or educational reasons."
Signiora Barbari responded with incredulity, posting on her Facebook page: "Yes to Neptune, no to censorship."
She told the Telegraph: "I wanted to promote my page but it seems that for Facebook the statue is a sexually explicit image that shows off too much flesh. Really, Neptune? This is crazy! How can a work of art, our very own statue of Neptune, be the object of censorship?"
Signiora Barbari got an answer, she could be happy ... when I was banned for a removed post of a fashion and art photo in a group closed for the public, I never got any anwer!
Signiora Barbari added: "Back in the 1950s, during celebrations for schoolchildren graduating, they used to cover up Neptune. Maybe Facebook would prefer the statue to be dressed again."
A Danish politician said the social media network, founded by Mark Zuckerberg in 2004, had blocked her from uploading an image of the Neptun statue.
And as if FACEBOOK is an unlearning or educatable entity they censored in january 2018 the 30,000 year old Venus of Willendorf, a nude sculpture and world heritage. It is considered a masterpiece of the paleolithic era, the statue features a voluptuous naked woman.

Venus von Willendorf, a 30,000 year old World Heritage - © Stern.de

The statue, some 30,000 years old, was discovered in the Austrian village of Willendorf in the early 20th century. in december 2017, an Italian woman named Laura Ghianda posted a photo of the ancient limestone nude on facebook - only to have it removed for being deemed inappropriate. A more recent post on January 9th on the Naturhistorisches Museum’s facebook page calls attention to the censorship of Ghianda’s image. The post proclaims: "let the venus be naked!"
The Natural History Museum said in a statement: "We think that an archeological object, especially such an iconic one, should not be banned from FACEBOOK because of ‘nudity’, as no artwork should be … since 29,500 years she shows herself as prehistoric fertility symbol without any clothes. Now FACEBOOK censors it and upsets the community," it explains. Meanwhile, the Naturhistorisches Museum’s own facebook posts featuring the Venus of Willendorf have never been edited by FACEBOOK’s nudity policies. But its reaction in the press was fierce.

Little Mermaid of Edvard Eriksen - © Kopenhagen.Citysam.de

This isn’t, as shown, the first time FACEBOOK has made the headlines for censorship reasons. Three years ago, 2015, the social network censored an image of Edvard Eriksen’s famous ‘Little Mermaid’ statue in copenhagen.
Social Democrat MP Mette Gjerskov claimed that FACEBOOK rejected the image, with Danish media reporting the Little Mermaid image was blocked as it contained "too much bare skin or sexual undertones." What the hell? This is a casted bronze ... which skin?
The social network is currently on trial in france for censoring a 2011 post featuring Gustave Courbet’s ‘l’origine du monde’ (1866).

"L´origin du mone" / "The origin of the world" by Gustave Courbet is currently in paris’ musée d’orsay - © designboom.com

In 1866 Gustave Courbet - a french painter who led the realism movement in the 19th-century - realized "L’origine du monde", a famous painting also known as "The origin of the world". Quite controversial for its time, the picture depicts a naked woman lying on the bed with her legs spread. Little would we know that more than 150 years later this work of art is still being confused for porn, and in particular by giant social media platform FACEBOOK.
In 2011, Frédéric Durand - a french teacher - posted on his personal facebook account a picture of "The origin of the world" with a link to an article about it. Because of this sharing action, his account was deactivated without warning or justification. After seven years, the fight is finally getting a day in court, where freedom of speech and the distinction between art and pornographic imagery will be ruled. and although "FACEBOOK’s terms and conditions prohibit nude images, the rules were amended in 2015 to allow for nudity in works of art,"says artnet.

The trial, which alleges censorship, took place in France in 2016 where the law guarantees every French citizen the right to speak, write and print freely.

In March 2016, a French court ruled that Facebook could not censor Gustave Courbet‘s painting Origin of the World after its image had been removed from the site. There was also an outcry when FACEBOOK forced the removal of Eugene Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People (1830) from an advertisement. (Again the social media site later apologized.)

The FACEBOOK prudery censored "La liberté guidant le peuple" by Eugene Delacroix - Source: Wikipedia

"The Terror of War" - © by Nick Út

2016, a Norwegian user was directed to remove the Pulitzer-winning "Terror of War" photograph of a naked girl running from napalm attacks during the Vietnam war from a post about images that changed history. The photo was made by Nick Út depicting Phan Thị Kim Phúc shortly after a Napalm bombing. The girl heavily burned run for help. The photo was choose the press photo of the year 1972, and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1973. 
In that case, FACEBOOK also claimed the image broke nudity rules. However, it later reversed its decision and issued an apology, saying the company recognized "the history and global importance of this image." But changing the algorythm?
“Because of its status as an iconic image of historical importance … we have decided to reinstate the image on Facebook where we are aware it has been removed,” FACEBOOK said.
In that case, FACEBOOK chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg apologized to Norwegian prime minister Erna Solberg after the company deleted a post by her in which she shared the picture in solidarity with Tom Egeland, a writer who had included the Nick Út picture as one of seven photographs he said had "changed the history of warfare."
As content curator for the world's largest social media platform, you delete a picture you consider obscene. Then some Norwegian woman writes an angry post. So you delete her post, too.
I mean, who does she think she is? The Prime Minister of Norway? Oh wait. This is showing an unbeatable ignorance, only surpassed by narcistic sociopat #45.
"These are difficult decisions and we don’t always get it right," Sandberg wrote. “Even with clear standards, screening millions of posts on a case-by-case basis every week is challenging. Nonetheless, we intend to do better. We are committed to listening to our community and evolving. Thank you for helping us get this right." Babbling "intending to do" means doing nothing. The photo was removed several times from FACEBOOK sites of journalists and politicians. Only massive international critics changed FACEBOOK on this photo ... but why the hell changing the most stupid evangical prudery pleasing algorhythm?
Why the hell should FACEBOOK in its hybris change anything?
2018, July - and FACEBOOK did it again! It banned paintings of Peter Paul Rubens. The Flemish tourist board has issued a complaint to social media network FACEBOOK, after it removed a number of posts featuring paintings by Flemish artists for nudity, it's reported. According to Belgium's VRT News Flemish-language public broadcaster, a number of social media posts have recently been taken down that feature paintings by artist Peter Paul Rubens. Rubens (1577-1640) was one of the most influential artists of the 17th century, and was famous for his Baroque paintings, many featuring nudes and cherubs.

Toerisme Vlaanderen says that it has issued an open letter to Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg, saying: "We have noticed that Facebook consistently rejects works of art by our beloved Peter Paul Rubens. Even though we secretly have to laugh about it, your cultural censorship is making life rather difficult for us."

Laughing, yes it to laugh about and ridiculous. It is immature and pompously arrogant.

Peter De Wilde, the CEO of Visit Flanders, tells VRT News: "Most Flemish museums have signed the letter.
"Breasts, buttocks and Peter Paul Rubens’ Cherubs are all considered indecent. Not by us, but by you", the letter says. Although this can be seen as humorous, the letter goes on to say this kind of censorship makes it difficult for interested parties to find out more about the Flemish Masters.
The Flemish Tourism Board amde a hilarious response to FACEBOOK´s relentless censorship.

Social media doesn´t want you to see Rubens´ paintings

Flanders – the perfect destination to enjoy the Flemish Masters in all their glory – is denouncing artistic censorship on social media platforms in a playful manner. At the Rubens House, ‘nudity viewers’ with a Facebook account were blocked from viewing nudity by a group of “social media police agents” - Source: YouTube

But The Brussels Times notes that it may be a "playful protest" to attract tourists to exhibitions hosted by the Visit Flanders agency. Maybe, but the fact is, that at least FACEBOOK´s censorship is a bad joke.
A number of "Paintings by Flemish Masters" exhibitions are currently underway at a number of Visit Flanders locations in northern Belgium.
The Brussels Times notes that the Flemish Office has a 2018-2020 cultural plan to promote the works of Rubens, as well as other Flemish painters including Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Jan van Eyck and other Flemish painters from the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries.
"Unfortunately, promoting our unique cultural heritage on the world’s most popular social network is impossible right now", says Toerisme Vlaanderen CEO Peter De Wilde.
An interesting read is the BBC News article about.
As I mentioned above some prudes in the USA have a hell of a problem with nudity. Most are the fat ones with minimal education and a questionable socialising, or they are hypocritic evangical, banning all human out of their lives, but crying to be christians. I would suggest that US America should look into the Bonobo apes societies - peacefull and laid back. And if they have stress or problems they do the best to get over it : Darling we have to talk, undress.
A more Bonobo lifestyle would cause eventually less weapons at least ;)

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