Write about the role of the arts and gentrification. What responsibility, if any, do you think individual artists have to communities of poor or working class people? If you were in a situation like the galleries and artists in Boyle Heights are, would you look to live or work in that neighborhood, or would you go elsewhere?
Part two:
Who was Hilton Kramer? How might his personal politics inform the critique of the NEA here?
What is your response to the Kramer articles? Do you feel as though the government should fund artworks that some may find challenging or offensive?
Kramer offers some words about the Tilted Arc controversy. Explain his POV and respond to it.
What do you think fueled Giuliani’s response to the Virgin Mary painting? Was he genuinely offended by it? Or was there another agenda behind his response?
