Should Facebook delete artwork off its site? As a graphic design major this question really makes me think.
According to a recent article of the New York Times, Facebook has been deleting photos of artwork off The New York Academy of Art’s page, along with deleting some of its students’ pages. More and more artists are complaining about the deleting of images and even blocking profiles. Facebook gave a statement for the New York Times saying it was a mistake.
“We count many amateur … and some professional … artists among our employees, and we’re thrilled that so many artists share their work on Facebook,” said Facebook spokesman Simon Axten in a statement.
“In this case, we congratulate the artist on his lifelike portrayal that, frankly, fooled our reviewers. Each member of our investigations team reviews thousands of pieces of reported content every day and, of course, we occasionally make a mistake,” he said. “We’re sorry for the confusion here and we encourage the artist to repost his work.”
However, the article also noted several more artists complaining about the same problem. In the article, one artist was quoted saying he thinks Facebook is going after artists.
I believe Facebook should allow the artwork to remain on its site, even if it does show some nudity.
If it is clearly a drawing or painting and not a photograph it should remain posted.
A lot of artists use Facebook to show potential buyers their work. It’s a huge networking site that has millions of users. By not allowing artists to post their work, Facebook takes away a huge marketing opportunity for these artists.
The New York Academy of Art is a figurative art school. If they cannot post images of their work, suddenly they are denied an opportunity to show prospective students what they can teach that other schools are not allowed. Is this fair?
I am sure all types of artists would agree with me that not allowing certain types of artwork online is devastating to the creator, especially when you see the same types of artwork in museums, art shows and even schools.
I agree with Facebook that nudity should be censored, but if it’s artwork, should it really be deleted?
Emily Murdock is a freshman graphic design major from St. Charles, MO.She is a Scout staff reporter.
Direct comments, questions and other responses to eemurdock@mail.bradley.edu.
