It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
According to an interview with the artist, the image is intended to be “reverent.”
This album is my prayer for America," he explained of the artwork, which shows the rapper kneeling on a U.S. flag in a Muslim prayer pose.
"Unless you are absolutely convinced that all of Islam is against you as an American, you should only see it as me treating the flag reverently."
Brother Ali is, without a doubt, one of the country’s pre-eminent Caucasian Muslim rappers, and I’m in no position to pass judgment on his work. The last rap tune I bought was “The Humpty Dance.” Ali has made appearances for the local Occupy movement when they protested evictions, and spoken out against antigay lyrics in rap. (Good for him, although it reminds me again that while I see rainbow flags outside half the churches in my progressive neighborhood, I wonder how many you see fluttering outside of mosques.) I may disagree with his politics and opinions, but it sounds as if he has overcome personal chaos with the strength of faith. You could say it's all show, an attempt to stand out in a crowded field, but there's not that many guys from Wisconsin who decide to go to Mecca as a career move.
But. That album cover. Two points.
Point #1 Do his intentions matter?
While listening to the BBC today I heard an interview with a California church singled out by the Southern Poverty Law Center - “an organization that monitors hate groups,” and thus utterly neutral and trustworthy, of course; the very act of dedicating yourself to the task proves you’re on the side of the angels. The interviewer, having been informed that the church endorsed the "Innocence of Muslims" YouTube video, badgered the pastor about supporting hate, sounding as though he had a film of sour jam around his teeth as he spoke. The pastor asked the interviewer to explain how the film was inaccurate. There wasn’t any response to that, but the earnestness of the pastor and all that JEEESUS talk was supposed to say it all.
Then the Southern Poverty Law Center spokesperson said that the church wasn’t violent, but such extremism, combined with easy access to firearms, made for a worrisome situation.
The impetus for the story, just to recap, was a video that supposedly made people on the other side of the world rise up in murderous rage, which had nothing to do with the church in the profile, except that they endorsed its sentiments. They do not believe that Mohammed was a prophet. I suspect the interviewer didn’t, either, but of course he said “The prophet Mohammed” whenever the subject arose.
It’s just easier all around that way. You get less mail.
Anyway. The video was intended to offend, so that’s one of the reasons to justify whatever befalls its makers - and, by extension, to tar those who don’t denounce it. This only applies if the offended group has an established predisposition to burn things and hurt people; the artist should have been aware of this, and hence tempered his speech accordingly.
If something is not intended to offend, should we accept the artist’s intentions above our own reactions?
If something is created with the knowledge that it will probably be misinterpreted and cause offense, is the artist responsible for the reaction to the misinterpretation?
The old whipping-horse Piss Christ is back in the news, for example. It’s a lovely work. It really is. The artist has stated it’s not anti-religious, but intended to deplore “commercializing or cheapening of Christian icons in contemporary culture.” No one thinks of that, of course, because he gave it a cheap gaudy name that pulled a big McLuhan: the medium is literally the message, and the sensationalist title swamps any discussion of its aesthetics, its intention, or the artist’s expressed intention to use bodily fluids as a means of combining the sacred and the physical. (Or so he says.)
Intentions, in other words, are just one element we should bring to our understanding of a piece of art. They might not assuage our objections, but at least we grasp the full spectrum of complexity that surrounds contentious ideas in a free society.
That’s one point. Let me now turn off my Art History college-minor brain.
Point #2: Oh, to hell with all that. Dear Brother Ali: the flag is not a prayer rug. Stand up and fold it right and go to a VFW hall where they’ll tell you what should be done with a flag that’s been treated like that.
Shame on you.
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Apr '11
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
Yah? Well what are you going to do about it? Burn down his embassy?
If you look for things to offend you you will find them. Until James put this out there how many of us would even know this man existed, much less his views?
The problem with the left and radical Muslims is that they make mountains out of mole hills. Why should we start, too? This man, his music, and his views are not a big deal.
Nov '10
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
I sort of prefer the idea of putting a poison in them that is only released when burned, but of course that wouldn't have affected this album art.
Oct '10
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
I heard the same BBC report on NPR - I really expected the pastor to be a raving lunatic survivalist preparing for the apocalypse, based on the lead in with the SPLC rep. I kept waiting for the clincher, the zinger, the thing that was going to prove how crazy and dangerous this pastor, and his congregation were.... and I kept waiting...and waiting....
The pastor ended with something about how rare it is for Christians to kill, torture, or imprison anyone for simply offending their religious beliefs, because there's no justification for it in their faith. What a nut.
Jul '11
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
That's ironic, because I just got a new target for my bow with Muhammed on it. The goal of Islam is to take over the world, so I view the religion as the enemy of freedom.
Edited on October 1, 2012 at 5:18pmJan '11
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
I care not a whit of Brother Ali. Was he in Atlanta for the BET awards?
I do care about "album" cover art? In the old days one would browse thru the albums at the record store and the Album Cover Art would catch your eye. I suspect the cover art for an established artist could be more subtle than the art for an unknown artist.
Does album art cost more or less today? I think in the vinyl days the cover art could sell the music. Now I think the music can sell the cover artist.
Jul '12
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
Scene: Uncle Sam kneeling on a Koran in church.
"Unless you are absolutely convinced that all of America is against you as a Muslim, you should only see it as me treating the Koran reverently."
How many people would buy that?
Apr '12
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
tabula rasa
Wylee Coyote: So...does this mean it's "understandable" for us to riot and burn stuff now?
Isn't that how this works? · 6 hours ago
Where and when are we to meet with the torches and pitchforks?
Update: Sorry, that was a bit too much. I'm calm now. Perhaps we could write some really ticked-off letters to editors. · 1 hour ago
Edited 1 hour ago
Let me know the time and place, as I am still not calm, and I am a Canadian, not even an American.
I always take comfort from the fact that so many Americans have guns and know how to use them. I too, learned to shoot, and take comfort from the fact that my son-in-law is a hunter and has lots of guns.
If you can hold a territory it is yours, if you can't hold a territory it is not yours. This is a pragmatic way to look at defense of country. I just hope it is never necessary against the Jihadists. They have been reading their Qur'ans and are following the exhortations of All and his Prophet, Muhammad.
I find the image extremely offensive.
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
James-
I know your writing is filled with irony and sarcasm, so I have to ask are you serious about Piss Christ being a lovely work, or am I not getting the irony?
Jun '10
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
Red Feline
tabula rasa
Where and when are we to meet with the torches and pitchforks?
Update: Sorry, that was a bit too much. I'm calm now. Perhaps we could write some really ticked-off letters to editors.
Let me know the time and place, as I am still not calm, and I am a Canadian, not even an American.
I always take comfort from the fact that so many Americans have guns and know how to use them. I too, learned to shoot, and take comfort from the fact that my son-in-law is a hunter and has lots of guns.
If you can hold a territory it is yours, if you can't hold a territory it is not yours. This is a pragmatic way to look at defense of country. I just hope it is never necessary against the Jihadists. They have been reading their Qur'ans and are following the exhortations of All and his Prophet, Muhammad.
I find the image extremely offensive. · 1 hour ago
Red: What if I added angry postscripts to my letters? Would that be OK? I don't want to offend anyone.
Lame attempt at irony: it is offensive.
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
Tommy: I'm serious. If you didn't know what the medium was, you'd think it was a venerated image suspended in a ethereal golden realm. But of course we're supposed to know what the medium is; hence the title.
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
I once had an artist/home decorator tell me that the reason for the urine was that there is no other way to create that particular color that's in the photo.
I told him I thought the color looked like piss, but I didn't cut his head off. So there's that.
Apr '12
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
Tommy De Seno: James-
I know your writing is filled with irony and sarcasm, so I have to ask are you serious about Piss Christ being a lovely work, or am I not getting the irony? · 26 minutes ago
You don't mean to say James doesn't mean every word he has written? And I believed what he said about that lovely work, Piss Christ.
And I believed too, everything said about the artist's intentions and the deep meaning contained in the work. :-)) Piss Christ I mean, not this delightful artwork we are discussing in this post.
Apr '12
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
Tabula Rasa: Red: What if I added angry postscripts to my letters? Would that be OK? I don't want to offend anyone.?
I really had to give your legitimate question a lot of thought, TR. Are your letters emails of the old-fashioned kind? To whom are you sending them? Are the recipients thin-skinned as so many people seem to be nowadays? Are the recipients likely to take umbrage and send the letters off to the MSM, who will then give them huge headlines and you will set the Middle East up in flames, again? Do these postscripts contain offensive pictures?
Perhaps these questions will help you make up your mind if you should send off any letters at all. :-))
Apr '12
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
Tommy De Seno
I once had an artist/home decorator tell me that the reason for the urine was that there is no other way to create that particular color that's in the photo.
I told him I thought the color looked like piss, but I didn't cut his head off. So there's that. · 37 minutes ago
Urine does have a peculiar colour, but even that can change from time to time. I wonder what exact colour the artist was hoping for when he created that wonderful "piece"?
So glad you didn't cut off his head, Tommy. Did it cross your mind that he might have cut off yours? If he were a Muslim, you would have to be careful.
Apr '12
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
I've had another look at the image, and wonder if Brother Ali is "mourning in America", and for what? The image brings into my mind 9/11, and the mourning in America after that event.
I find it even more offensive than when I first looked at it.
Mar '12
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
I am absolutely convinced that Islam is against us as Americans and all other non-Muslims. The Koran is quite explicit on this.
And, an artist's intention does not invalidate the opinion of the viewer.
Jun '12
Re: It's Reverent. Your Objections are Misguided.
Um, I think maybe it is kinda reverent. That's exactly how I look after I've accidentally sneezed into my hands.
At least he didn't spray it all over the flag. Nice save, I'd say.
Just like Serrano's Piss Christ, it nicely blends the sacred and the secreted. What's to get all hot and bothered about?