DAVID SEPULVEDA PHOTO
Scott Schuldt with Skinner.
A controversial work of art by New Haven artist Gordon Skinner — a basketball hoop with a backstop that depicted a pig’s head with a police officer hat — was reinstalled on the grounds of the Goffe Street Armory on County Street, the site from which it had been removed earlier in the fall after complaints that it was offensive prompted its removal and placement in the Artspace Gallery on Orange Street.
Commissioned by Artspace as part of the “Game On!”-themed, City Wide Open Studios (CWOS) Armory weekend, Skinner’s piece was part of a series of four pieces displayed during the mid-October event, which drew thousands to the enormous temporary gallery featuring hundreds of artworks.
Urban Totems (Cops).
Skinner’s mixed-media work is a symbol of homemade urban ingenuity: a make-do milk crate hoop and backstop. It also carries a powerful and timely message about police overreach and abuse, echoing an era when the word “pig” was a common urban synonym some used to describe police as oppressors.
Fritchey with Skinner.
At Sunday’s re-installation, Sarah Fritchey, Artspace gallery curator and gallery director, could be seen alongside Skinner attaching an updated statement about the displayed work to the chain link fence that surrounds that portion of the armory building. Under the heading “Game On! Special Commission” and the title “Urban Totems (Cops),” the placard explained the history of the piece’s removal after a police officer and a corrections officer complained about the imagery. It also summarized the subsequent conversations with the city, police, and community that led to its re-installation.
Skinner had opted to protect the integrity of the piece and remove it entirely from the original site after Rebecca Bombero, New Haven director of parks and recreation, suggested repositioning the piece to reduce its high-profile visibility and perhaps allay the concerns of the offended or those who might not perceive the artist’s intent.
Two public forums followed “to address the discomfort that arose in the officers who filed the complaint and issues of artistic censorship.” During a second forum, poets Tenisi Davis and Attallah Shepard performed pieces inspired by a zine written by Skinner entitled Society Fuct. The piece underscored the need for a conversation between police and citizens “to include the community in community policing, and the need to make structural changes in New Haven’s police department to combat the broken and impenetrable parts of the federal criminal justice system.”
“The artwork and the forums point to the lead role that artists and arts organizations can play in raising awareness around the histories, events, ideologies, and systems that have led to structural racism within the criminal justice system and perpetuate events of police brutality, racial stereotyping, police stereotyping, and youth criminalization. Notably, these conversations are happening in person, in small groups, and at the local level,” noted Fritchey.
Chief of Police Anthony Campbell, who could not attend the second forum, issued a declaration of public arts supporting a commitment to protect public works of art and all citizens’ first amendment rights. Assistant Chief of Patrol Tony Reyes read it aloud. Also in attendance at the meeting was New Haven Chief Administrative Officer Michael Carter, Director of Arts, Culture and Tourism Andrew Wolf, Lieutenant Herb Sharp, and Fire Chief John Alston. Carter, speaking on behalf of the city and in support of the artwork, acknowledged that, “the city had overreacted” with respect to Skinner’s piece.
Holding a firm grip on the basketball hoop post while artist Scott Schuldt hammered in support shims at the base, Skinner said he was proud and inspired by the dialogue his artwork had sparked, including issues of censorship, police brutality, and artists’ rights, and also said that the process was, for him, therapeutic.
Artspace Executive Director Helen Kauder said her consciousness was raised by some of the community conversations. “It’s important that some conversations be held outside of the substation, out of City Hall — in a place like Artspace where members of law enforcement are out in the community. It’s not on their home turf. It’s a different kind of conversation.”
Some reinstallation attendees pose for a group photo.
Fritchey said the forums “prioritized listening, spending time together, and sharing personal experiences that are often challenging and uncomfortable. Artspace is working with the attendees to continue this series of face to face conversations in 2017 and to acknowledge the value of talking towards and through this discomfort.”
A 4‑part video series of conversations taped at the Artspace forums can be viewed here.
Ironically, the open-mindedness of the police in this situation helps them to come across as the opposite of what Skinner's work depicts. Yay first amendment!