Confronting Bodies: Facebook
Date of Action: March 27-29 2010, April 5, 2010, and April 7, 2010
Specific Location: Facebook
Description of Artwork: The paintings in question are called Madonna and Child, showing women breastfeeding babies while having a sort of halo above them.
Description of Incident: Hansen posted one of her Madonna and Child paintings on a Facebook group page called Portrait and Figure Artists. It was removed on March 27. Thinking it was a mistake, she re-posted the painting along with some other Madonnas. They were all taken off the site, and she received an email from Facebook, saying that she violated their Terms of Use by posting something hateful, threatening, or obscene.
Results of Incident: Hansen responded to Facebook by sending an email questioning their policy. Full nude paintings were allowed to remain on the site while hers, which were less explicit and just showed breastfeeding, were taken down.
She started a group on Facebook protesting this policy.
Source: http://www.katehansenart.com/; http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=105484426150424&ref=mf; http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=109151119105733&ref=mf