I asked this question last nught and was hoping for more opinions so here it is again.
First a little background. I won first place in a school competition for poetry coming first place against two other high schools. I now have the chance to recite the winning poem and one other at a dinner being held for accomplished artists and writers in the town which I live. It will be attended by a few local officials such as the mayor and city counsellors. My principal and a couple other local principals will be there along with teachers, some of my fellow students and about a hundred and fifty people.
The winning poem was inspired by the YouTube video “Dirty F@#*ing Hippies Were Right!” (View it, it’s fantastic) Mine however is a protest against female consumerism, materialism, toxic products sold in the form of cosmetics, female body image and capitalism attempting controlling female minds through advertising and manufactured pop culture. The last time I recited it in public was in a school gymnasium, and not wishing to offend people in a public school I didn’t recite it as I had intended it to be.
My intended method of delivering this poem is to distance myself from every trapping of society that I was railing against. In other words for full impact of the poem and remain non-hypocritical I intended it to be recited in the nude. It is how I believed that this poem should be delivered when I wrote it. I had begun to write it for myself and not for a competition.
I have approached my teacher and she said that it is an artist’s prerogative but she isn’t the final say. My principal said that he wishes that I wouldn’t do it because of how it may reflect on the school, but since I am 18 and it is not on school property it is not up to him. The organizers have stated they can not legally suppress my freedom of expression and since it is to promote art they can not morally say no, since it would suppress my artistic freedom of expression.
What are your thoughts on this?
First a little background. I won first place in a school competition for poetry coming first place against two other high schools. I now have the chance to recite the winning poem and one other at a dinner being held for accomplished artists and writers in the town which I live. It will be attended by a few local officials such as the mayor and city counsellors. My principal and a couple other local principals will be there along with teachers, some of my fellow students and about a hundred and fifty people.
The winning poem was inspired by the YouTube video “Dirty F@#*ing Hippies Were Right!” (View it, it’s fantastic) Mine however is a protest against female consumerism, materialism, toxic products sold in the form of cosmetics, female body image and capitalism attempting controlling female minds through advertising and manufactured pop culture. The last time I recited it in public was in a school gymnasium, and not wishing to offend people in a public school I didn’t recite it as I had intended it to be.
My intended method of delivering this poem is to distance myself from every trapping of society that I was railing against. In other words for full impact of the poem and remain non-hypocritical I intended it to be recited in the nude. It is how I believed that this poem should be delivered when I wrote it. I had begun to write it for myself and not for a competition.
I have approached my teacher and she said that it is an artist’s prerogative but she isn’t the final say. My principal said that he wishes that I wouldn’t do it because of how it may reflect on the school, but since I am 18 and it is not on school property it is not up to him. The organizers have stated they can not legally suppress my freedom of expression and since it is to promote art they can not morally say no, since it would suppress my artistic freedom of expression.
What are your thoughts on this?